76541047 Selections From the Husia Text (1)

SELECTIONS FROM

THE HUSIA

ALSO BY MAULAIUA KAREIUGA

The African American Holiday of Kwanzaa: A celebration ofFamily, Community and Culture (1g8g)

The Book of Coming Forrh By Day:The Ethics of the Declanations of Innocence (1gBg)Studies in Kemetic Culture (1g8g)

The Foundations of Kawaida Theony (1g8g)

Kemet and the African Worldview (1g861

Intr'oduction to Black Studies (1982)

Kawaida Theory: An Introductory Outline (1gBO)

Essays on Struggle: Position and Analysis (1978)

Kwanzaa: Origins, Concepts, Pnactice (1 9771

SELECTIONS FROM

Selected and Fletranslated by

MAULANA KARENGA

THE HUSIA

SACRED WISDOM OF ANCIENT EGYPT

THE UNIVERSITY OF SANKORE PRESS / LOS ANGELES

First Printing, 1984Second Printing, 1989

Cover design and artwork Kweli

sELEcrloNS FROM THE HUSIA: sACRED wlsDoM oF ANO|ENT EGYPT.Copyright@ 1984 by Maulana Karenga. All rights reserved. Printed in the Unitedstates of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any mannerwhatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotationsembodied in cnitical articles and reviews. For information address: The Universityof Sankore Press,2650 West 54th Str€et, Los Angeles, CA 90O43

lsBN 0-943412{,64

To Cheikh Anta Diop who posed the proiect of rescuingand reconstructing the legacy of ancient Egypt and usingit to revivify African culture and to produce a truly Africanparadigm of what humans ought to be and become.

And to Afnican people hene in the U.S. and evenywhenewhose n ich and anc ient monal and sp in i tua l hen i tagei 'epresents a fundamental legacy not only for them-selves but for all humanity.

CONTENTS

Foreword

The Book of Knowing the Cneations . . . .The Book of Knowing the Creations

The Book of Pnayens and Sacred PnaisesThe Book of Prayers and Sacred Pra ises . . . . .

The Book of the Monal NamativeThe Book of Khun-Anup . . .

The Books of Wise lnstnuct ion . . . .The Book of Ptah-Hotep ,.T h e B o o k o f K a g e m n i . . . . .The Book of KhetiThe Book of AniThe Book of AmenomopeThe Book of AnkhsheshonqiThe Book of Phebhon

x i i i

1

5

1 11 5

273 1

374 1495053586467

The Books of Contemplation 7sThe Book of Khakheper-Ra-Soneb . . . , 77The Book of lpuwer 78The Book of Dialog with the Soul . 80The Book of Songs 82The Book of Neferti 85

The Book of Declanations of VintuesThe Book of Declarations of Virtues . . . .

89g3

The Books of Rising Like Ra ..The Book of Coming Forth By DayThe Book of VindicationThe Book of Rising and Transformation

991 0 51 1 21 1 8

FOREWOBD

Fon at least two centuries conscious and committedB lack th inkens have taugh t B lack peop le abou t ounancient Ethiopian and Egyptian heritage. Intenestingly,consciousness about this cultunal henitage during thatperiod seems to have oniginated among Blacks in theDiaspona and neturned from the Western Hemisphereto the A f r i can con t inen t . Cer ta in l y , such consc ious -ness has been an integral fonce in the Black national-ist movements in the Western Hemisphene, as well asAfr ica fon well oven a hundned yeans. Thnoughout theperiod thene has been a stnong appreciation fon thehighly developed spirituality of rhe Black people of theN i le Va l ley whom we ca l l t he anc ien t Egyp t ians . Sodominant was this aspect of the gneatest civi l izat ionof antiquity that Mart in Delaney, wnit ing in the nine-beenth century, proclaimed that the governmental sys-tem of ancient Egypt was a "nel igious pol i ty".

Dr. Maulana Karenga following the teachings of Dr.Carter G. Woodson, George G.M. James and Dr. CheikhAnta Diop, has made a distinct contnibution to an honorabretradition. The Husia is an outstanding compiration andrendition of selections from the most important sacredlitereture of all time. The need for such works is rongpast due, and Dr. Karenga should be commended for hispioneering effort in this direction.

The quest fon spir i tual ennichment among Black peo-ple in the physical and cultunal Diaspona has led to theadopt ion of the Holy Books of o ther peoples; theTonah, the Bible and the Guran. lronical ly, the sacnedliterature of ancient Egypt which pnedates those textsby thousands of yeans is the source of much of thewisdom in those Holy Books, as Dr, Karenga pointsou t . The fac t tha t B lack peop le cou ld f i nd sp i r - i t ua lcomfont in those alien scriptunes speaks both to theAfrican contnibutions to those religions and the inten-sity of the Afnican spir i tual quest. with al l due regand

to the Black tnadit ion within the so-cal led gneat nel i-gions, it is now time to "return to the sounce".

The Husia is thus a vital step towand the ne-cneationand restonation of our spirituar foundation. The textsse lec ted by Dr . Karenga ane f rom the tnu ly g rea tbooks of ancient Egypt. These serections as well asthe cneative arnangement into seven sections provide asuggested fnamewonk fon the development of a langenand more definit ive Holy Book for Afnican people.

The netnanslat ions done by Dr. Kanenga ane gneatlyenhanced by his wide famil ianity with many languages,especiql ly bhe Afnican languages, as well as his talentas a poet. He has not only rescued the texts from the"l ibenal" and st i l ted translat ions of the egypbologists,but in my opinion, he has also nendered bhem in spinitmuch mone ak in to the tnue mean ing o f the anc ien tscribes. In a typical ly Egyptian sense, he has bneathedl i fe in to them, The nesu l t i s a thonough ly neadab le ,enjoyable and inspining volume of spinitual l i teratune.

The commentaries at the beginning of each of theseven sections ane veny insightful in helping the readerput the text in the proper context. Dr. Kanenga dem-onstnates a profound gnasp of the inner meaning ofthe various concepts as well as the ovenall ontology.His modest and subtle critique of the amogance of theegyptologists in these commentaries as well as in hisintnoduction is a good argument for the task he hasundentaken.

The artwonk done by Kweli is superb. The illustra-tions ane clear and authentic and very appropriatelyselected in accondance with the theme of the wonk.

Thus, all of these elements: the appnopniate selec-tions: the cneative arrangement; the poetic and contex-tual retranslations; the insightful commentaries; andt h e s u p e r b a n t w o n k n e s u l t i n a b o o k t h a t w i l l b eimmensely useful to mil l ions of Black people seeking

spiritual enrichment and cultural renewal. The is espe-

cially tnue of those who have recently founded temples

based upon ancient Egyptian spinituality. The work will

a lso be usefu l to Black scholars in the in ef fonts tochart new dinections in our intellectual development.

To the ancient Black people of the Nile Val ley, Maatwas the h ighest eth ica l commitment . The socia l for -mula for Maat is reciprocity: the creaton "Di.fAnkh"(He gives life). Human beings in tunn must give that'which sustains life - both mental and physical, ln thatregard, The Husia is an outstanding model of Maat.

Jacob H. CanruthersThe Kemetrc lnst i tute, Chtcago

INTRODUCTION

For years African scholans on the Continent and in theDiaspora have taught on the rich moral and spirituallegacy of ancient Afnica, especially that of Egypt. But noone has written more on or given more substantiveproof - textually, logically and historically - of the achieve-ment of Egypt and the debt owed Africa by the worldthan Dr. Cheikh Anta Biop. He has constantly urged usto study the ancient texts and extract from them theirrich and varied cultural legacy and use it as a basis for arenewed and reinvigorated Afnican culture. Moreover,Dr. Jacob Canruthers, Directon of the Kemetic Insti-tute in Chicago and his col leagues ane doing impontantwonk focused on the need to nescue and netranslatethe sacred and seculan l iEeratune of ancient Egypt asa means to gnasp more effect ively our histony and ourro le in the fonwand thrust of human h is tory. Thisvolume is a self-conscious contr ibution to this histon-ical and cunnent pnoject.

A pnimany aim of this volume is to pnovide a bniefrepnesentative selection of ancient Egyptian sacned l i t-enatune which can senve as a readable and enjoyablerefenence for those intenested specif ical ly in ancientEgyptian and Afnican sacned litenature and those whoane interested in ancient Egyptian and Afr ican l i tena-tune in genenal whebhen sacred or secular, Moneoven,as a part of a langen work, it nepnesents a contnibu-t ion to developing a def in i t ive Afr ican sacned textwh ich w i l l senve as a mora l and sp in i tua l gu ide andreinforcement in the same way othen sacned texts dofon their adhenents and bel ievers. The langer volumewhen it is completed wil l be published by Thind WorldPress.

I have organized The Husia in to seven sect ions

xi i i

which represents the vanious kinds of texts I found inmy neseanch , i . e , , books o f cnea t ion , pnayers andsacned praises, monal nannative, wise instnuction, con-templation, declanations of vintues and "nising l ike Ra',.As thene is no single ancient Egyptian sacned text, i tw a s n e c e s s a r y n o t o n l y t o c o l l e c t w n i t i n g s f n o mvanious sounces and attempt to impose some onder onthem, but to give the wnit ings a name also.

The title of this text, The Husia, is raken fnom twoancient Egyptian wonds which signify the two divinepowers by which Ra (Ptah) cneated the wonld, i ,e,, Htr,authoritative utterance and sia, excepbionaf insight,Thus, I have put the two together to expness the con-cept "auLhonitat ive uttenance of exceptional insighl".Given the impontance of authoritative utterance andexceptional insight to the monal and spinitual nealm andthe in d iv ine chanac ten in anc ien t Egyp t ian theo logy ,Husia appeans as both compell ing and p.ope. as a t i t lefor a text of ancient Egyptian sacned wnit ings.

In preparing this volume, I have made necessany useof the exist ing tnanslat ions and studies in English andFrench and am thus indeb ted to them. Howeven , Ioften disagneed with thein conceptual conclusions onmany passages and the words they used to expressthem. l t was and is my conclusion that they have pro-vided essential ly dul l and neductive translat ions of avery beautiful and rnoving litenature. In their epignaphicfascination fon l i tenal tnanslat ions, the epignaphens andtradit ional egyptologists have given us tnanslat ions ofl i teratune not only devoid of much of i ts original beautybut much of i ts meaning also. One can appreciate theneed fon exact translat ions but l i tenal tnanslat ions aneno t a lways exac t on connec t . Fon examp le , one cantnanslate the Swahil i sentence "Wanasema Kizulu kamamaji" l i tenal ly and get "They speak Zulu l ike water".But i t f iguratively and connectly means "They speakZulu f luently." Thus, I have taken the l ibenty of beingfigunative whene a l i teral tnanslat ion would deprive the

passage o f e i then beau ty o l ' mean ing on bo th . And

whene thene are questions of conrectness in tnansla-t ion on whene I have added a wond on phrase fon clan-i ty, I have used i tal ics, Also, fon the most pant ' I haveused modern English nathen than the st i l ted El izabe-than, bibl ical language so often used by tnanslators.Howeven , when ancha ic wonds l i ke "beho ld " seemedmore poeLic and appnopriate, I took poetic l icense andused them. And with the same l icense, I attempted toneduce and nemove the male and c lass b ias of thewrit ings.

M o n e o v e n , I h a v e u s e d o n e n a m e f o n G o d , R a ,except in the Men-nofenite tMemphite) descnipt ion ofcneation. Even then, I used Ra aften the name Ptah. Inothen cases, I simply tnanslated the wond as an attr^ib-ute on pnaise name of Ra, i .e . , Atum, the Complete onPenfecten; Khepen, the Bningen-into-Being, etc. I alsotnanslated the names of "gods" and "goddesses" bytheir attnibu[es and tnanslated the words "god" and"goddess" as powens o f heaven , d i v ine powens onexal ted ones, This was done fon s impl i f icat ion as wel las the fact that thene is suppor"t fon the angumentthat al l of these ane simply attnibutes and manifesta-t ions of Ra, Also, "netchen" or "netel '" is not only thewot'd fon god or goddess as in English, but penhaps isbest bnanslated as powen on pninciple.

Finally, it is important to state here that this retranslation,as I have tenmed it, is neithen set in cement nor resistant torevision. lt is, in truth, a working version only, a tentativepresentation, inviti ng response, cornection and a ssista nce.It is for this reason that I have prepared this volume to bereleased duning the First Annual Ancient Egyptian StudiesConference, which is to be held24-26 Febnuary 1984 in LosAngeles and which is sponsorcd by the Institute of Pan-Af rican Studies and co-chaired by Dr. Jacob Carruthens andme.

It is at this point I acknowledge most gnatefully thefraternal and important collaboration anJ hetp I havehad fnom Dr. canruthers in prepaning this volume. Histranslations, advice and encouragement are importantmaterial out of which this volume is made, Also, I givethanks to my friend and wife, Tiamoyo, who pnepanedthe manuscript for the pubrisher, and to the lnstituteof Pan-African studies and the advocates of us fonsuppont, suggestions and inspiration. As always, I amgrateful to my people whose stnuggre and aspinationsfor liberation and a higher lever of human life encour--ages me constant ly to seek ef fect ive models andmeans fon both,

Maulana Kanenga

Institute of Pan-African StudiesLos Angeles, CalifonniaJanuary ,1g84

xvl

Book of Knowing the Gneations

T H E B O O K O F K N O W I N G T H E C R E A T I O N S , T h i s b o o ktakes its t it le from "The Book of Knowing the Creations ofRa and of Striking Down Apophis" [the serpent of evil andchaosJ, but it contains writ ings from other sources as well.Since thene is no single Eext which pnesents a composite ofthe ancient Egyptian concept of cneation, an effective graspof i t i s poss ib le on ly thnough gaLher ing and synLhes iz ingpassages from sevenal sources.

As the tit le suggests, the ancient Egyptians viewed crea-Eion as a continuous process. Thus, we have "The Creations"rather than "The Creation". The finst cneation was the finstevent at the first t ime. But creation is nepeated each day innature and in human history. In nature, sunnise and the newbeginning i t bnings each day is a ref lect ion of th is, ln humanhistory, it is reflected in humanity's constant establishmentand neestablishment of order and righteousness in the midstof chaos and evil in a nole similar to Ra.

ln just these few passages we nead the eanliest wnittenrecord of the dawning of humanity's sEnuctured conscious-ness concerning ontology and ethics. These sacred writ ingspredaEe Hebnew, Christian and Muslim ontologies and ethicsby thousands of years and apparently contributed to them,Thus, we find for the first t ime in human history the con-cept of Logos, i ,e. , creat ion thnough conceptual thought andauthoritative utterance; the concept of fnee wil l and humanequality in Ra's statement on His Four Good Deeds; and areflective monality which indicates definite social judgmentson tha t wh ich is loved and tha t wh ich is ha ted . and the

belief that God wourd gnant rife for the righteous and punish-ment and death for the wicked.

It is intenesting and important to note that Ra cr.eates theunivense thnough maat, a tenm with mult ip le meanrngs, i .e. ,n i g h t e o u s n e s s , t r u t h , j u s t i c e , o r d e r , h a r m o n y , n i g h t n e s s ,evenness, levelness, etc. l ts importance l ies in the fact thati t i s a d i v i n e c o n c e p t , p o w e r a n d p r a c t i c e w h i c h n o t o n r yinformed and aided Ra's action, but was established as thefundamental concept, power. and practice for- the organiza-Eton, maintenance and development of human society also.T h u s , i n e a c h b o o k m a a t i s a c e n t r a r c o n c e n n a n d f o c u s ,whether as tnuth, justice, r-ighteousness, orden on hanmony.

TheBook of Knowing the Greations

l . RA's DESCRTpToN oF Hrs cREATtoN

Thus said Ra, the Lond of Al l , Lord of the UtmostL i m i t s , a f t e r H e h a d c o m e i n t o b e i n g : l a m t h e o n ewho came into being as Khepen, He who comes intobeing and brings into being. When I came into being,being i tse l f came into being. Al l be ings came into beingaften I came into being, Many wene the beings thatcame forth fnom the commands of my mouth. Heavenhad not yet come into being. Non had earth come intobeing. Non had the gnound been cneated on the thingswhich creep and cnawl upon i t . I raised up beings inthe pnimondial watens as inent things. I found no placeon which to stand. I for-med i t from the desire in myheart; I laid the foundation thr-ough Maat. I cr-eatedfonms o f eveny k ind , Many wene the fonms wh ichissued fonth fnom the commands of my mouth. Not yethad t established Shu, the power and principle of ligh|and air, Nor sent fonth Tefnut, the power and principleof moisture. Thene existed no one who acted togethenwi th me. I conce ived i t i n my own hean t , And thenecame inbo be ing a vas t numben o f fonms o f d i v inebeings as fonms of offspr-ing and fonms of their. off-spning from them . . .

I came fonth fnom among the plants which I createdand I cneated al l things which cneep and cnawl and al lthat exists among them. Then by the power and pninci-p les o f l i gh t and a i r and the power and pn inc ip le o fmoistune, heaven and eanth were br.ought into being,and by eanuh and heaven Osinis, Hor.us, Seth, lsis andNephthys wene bnought into being fnom the womb, oneaften anothen, and they gave binth to the mult i tudes inthis land,

t lI I . THE CREATION OF RA AS PTAH

lt is Ptah b form of Bd, the Most Gneat, who hasgiven existence to al l the divine powens and to theiressences thnough his heant, mind and tongue, Thus i tcame to pass that the heart, mind and tongue ruled al lthe othen membens thnough teaching that ptan Hd iswithin every body, as heart and mind, and within evenymouth, as . tongue, of a l l the d iv ine powers, of a i thumankind, of catt le, of al l creeping things and of al ll iv ing bhings. And He th inks as hear t and mind andcommands as tongue whatever He wishes.

Ptah's (Ra'd cCImpany of divine powens ane beforeH i m a s t e e t h a n d l i p s . . . a n d . . a n e t h e t e e t h a n d l i p swh ich es tab l i shed the names o f a l l t h ings and f romwhich came fonth Shu, the powens of l ight and ain andTefnut, the powen of moistune and brought into beingthe company of divine powers themselves.

The seeing of the eyes, the hearing of the eans andthe bneathing of the nose ane communicated to theheant and mind, and the heant and mind cause al l per-ceptions to come forth. And what the heant and mindthink and wish is declared by the tongue. So wene alldivine powens created and the company of divine pow-ers completed.

Indeed every wond of God came into being throughthat which the heart and mind thought and the tonguecommanded,

Thus, by means of the Word, al l facult ies and quali-t ies wene fashioned and created which furnish al l foodand yield al l nourishment,

And thus, Justice is given to one who does what isloved and punishment is given to one who does what ishated.

Thus, also, is l i fe given to the peaceful and deathgiven to one who violates the Law.

And thus wene made every work and all cnafts, theaction of the anms and hands, the motion of the legs,the movement of every memben of the body, accordingto the command which is conceived by the heant andmind and bnought fonth by the tongue, and which cne-ates the usefulness and action of evenything.

It is said of Ptah (Fla) then, He is He who made al land created the d iv ine powers. He is Ta- tenen t theRisen Landl who pnoduced the divine powens and fromwhom everything came forth food and pnovisions,divine offerings and eveny good thing.

Thus, it was necognized and understood that He isthe mightiest of all divine powers. And after He hadcneated all Ehings and all the divine uttenances, Ptah(Ra) was pleased and nested.

| | l . THE FouR GooD DEEDS oF THE cREAToR

These are wonds spoken by Him-Whose-Names-Ane-Hidden, the Lord of Al l , as He speaks befone thosewho silence the stonm duning the sailing of the com-pany of Ra: Hail and Peacel I r'epeat to you the FounGood Deeds which my own heant and mind did for mein the midst of the senpent co i l o f ev i l , in orden tos i lence the tu rmo i l . I d id Foun Good Deeds on thethreshold of the horizon.

I created the foun winds so that every penson mightbneathe in his on her t ime and place, This is one ofthe deeds.

I cneated the great flood for inrigation so that thehumble might benefi t from it l ike the gneat. This too,is one of the deeds.

I made eveny person like his and her fellow; and I didnot command them to do ev i l . l t was in the i r own

hearts and minds which caused them to disobey thatwhich I commanded. This too is one of the deeds.

I made the heants of men and women so that theywou ld no t fonge t the day o f dea th , so tha t sacnedofferings might be made to the divine powe.s of thedistr icEs. And this too is one of the deeds.

Thus, I have created the d iv ine powens fnom mysweat and humankind fnom the tears of my eye,

lV. sELF DEFrNrroN By RA

_ And His Majesty Ra, Lord of Ai l , spoke to rsis theGneat, saying:

I am He who made heaven and ean th and kn i t tedtogether the mountains and cneated al l thal exist uponthem,

I am He who made the pnimeval waten and causedheaven to come into being.

I am He who made the male and the female so thatthe joys of love might come into the wonld,

I am He who made the heavens and the h iddenplaces of the two honizons so that the sours may dwellin them.

I am He who when He opens His eyes, i t becomeslight and when He closes His eyes, i t becomes dark;He at whose command the watens of the Nire nise andwhose name the Exalted Ones do nob know,

I am He who cnea tes the houns so tha t the dayscome into being.

I am He who in i t i a tes the new yean fes t i va ls andcneates the f lood watens.

I am He who made living fire so that bhe works ofthe houses might be performed.

I am Kheper, the Bringer into Being, in the morning,Ra, the Most High and Glorious at noon and Atum,the Complete One in the evening.

TheBook of Pnayers and Sacned

Praises

BOOK OF PRAYERS AND SACRED PRA|SES. Praise poerryis a mode o f verba l ce lebra t ion o f bo th the secu la r andsacred which is a distinct and undeniable Afnican institutionand ach ievement . A l though o then peop les in o then t imesengaged in poetic praising, it was and is not as pervasive orvital bo the seculan and sacned as in Afnica. And the factthat praise poetry of both kinds - or "songs of praising andglorifying" as they ane called in the Book of Coming Forth byDay - was so pervas ive and v i ta l to anc ien t Egypt ne in -forces the tr-uth of its African rootedness. The praise poemis both aesthetic and spiritual. In fact, its beauty is a partof its spinituality, for it enhances the sense of wonden, gran-deur and oneness with the God on penson pnaised,

The effective word in Africa is divirre and cneative. rt cailsto mind Ra, a t the f i rs t event , who conce ived and com-manded and the universe and all in it came into being. lt noton ly announces , i t evokes a t t i tude and behav io r and re in -fonces both. Moreoven, the praise poem is an act of partici-pation and sharing in the qualit ies and action of the praised,Thus, the pnaise poems to Ra ane not only acts of worshipand offering, but a shaning in His strength and glory, Hisbeneficence and beauty and in His creation and active careof it.

I had or ig ina l l y in tended toPsalms, fon psalms ane sacredchanged for two basic neasons,

ca l l th is book the Book o fsongs or hymns. However, IFinst, I did not want to give

1 3

the impression I or ancient Egypt was borrowing from theBible. For in t ruth i t was the other way anound as bothchronological and textual evidence pnove. And secondly, theterm psalms is not as aesthetic or definitive of the contentso f t h e b o o k a s t h e c h o s e n t i b l e , " p r a y e r s a n d s a c r e dPraises."

In this book we find descriptions and praises of God thatwould later appear in Hebrew, christian and Muslim sacnedtexts. Ra is the Good shepard fond of His flock which is inHis own image. He rescues the humble and needy, heans andanswers the prayens of the prisoner and the oppressed. Heis "the helmsman Uhat knows the water well" and the res-cuer and "pnime minister of the poor", He is the physicianwho cures w i thout med ic ine and the judge tha t takes nobribes. lt is this imagery of God and humankind's relationshipand the use of human society and nature as realms ofrevealing the Cneator's benevolence that senved as a sourceof not onfy the Hebrew Psalms but, as we shall see of theirtheology in general also.

1 4

TheandBook of Prayers Sacred Praises

l .

And Amenomope and his wife Hathon said:

Blessed is one who sits in the hands of Amen Ra,for i t is He who dinects the t imid, who nescues thehumble and the needy, who gives the breath of l i fe tobhe one whom He loves and gnants him or her a longlife in the West of Thebes.

Oh my God, Lond of Londs, Amen Ra, Lond of Kar-nak. Give me your hand and save me. Shine upon meand susta in me. You ane the only God and there isnone like you. You ane Ra who rises in the heavens,the God who created men and women.

It is you who heans the prayers of one who calls onHim, who saves a man and woman from the hands ofthe violent and who makes the Nile rise and flow fonthose who a re in H im. Ra i s the per fec t gu ide fo revenyone.

When He nises men and women live and thein heantsare l i f ted up when they see the one who g ives thebreath of life to those who are in the egg, who makepeople and birds to l ive, who supplies even food fonmice in the i r ho les as we l l as fo r wonms and f l eas .May He grant us an honorable bunial after an old age,so that we may be safe in His hands.

l t .Neb-Ra gives praise to Amen Ra saying:

Amen, Ra, Lord of Karnak, the great God, who pne-

1 5

sides over Thebes, the Holy God who heans pnayens,who comes at the cal l of the humble and needy and tothose in distress, who gives stnength to the one whois weak.

I give pnaise to Amen Ra, Lord of the Thrones ofEgyp t who p res ides over Thebes . I k i ss the gnoundbefone Amen Ra of Thebes, the great God, the Lor.dof the sanctuary, gneat and beauti ful, that He may letmy eyes see His beauty.

Praise be to Amen Ra. I make hymns in His name, Igive Him praise to the heights of heaven and to theends of the earth. I tel l of His majesty and mightto those who sa i l downs t ream and those who sa i lupstneam.

Stand in awe of Him, Declane Him to your- son anddaughter, to the gneat and the small . Declare Him tbgenena t ion a f ten genera t ion who ane no t ye t bonn ,Declane Him to the f ish in the deep and to the binds inthe sky. Declare Him to the ignonant and to Lhe wise.Stand in awe of Him.

You, O' Amen Ra, are Lond of those who have novoice. You come at the call of the humble and needy.When I cry out to you in my distness, y-ou come quicklyto my rescue, you come to give strength to one who isweak and to save me fnom my enslavement.

You , Amen Ra, Lond o f Thebes , a re One who nes-cues those who are shut in and cut off . For you aneHe who is menciful. And when people cny out to you,you come fnom afar.

The painter of Amen Ra in the Place-of-Truth, Neb-Ra, who stands vindicated, son of anothen painten inthe P lace-o f -Tnu th , Pa i who s tands v ind ica ted a lso ,made th i s s te la in the name o f H is Lond Amen Ra,Lord of Thebes who comes at the call of the humbleand needy.

1 6

I made fon Him pnaises to His name' For His mightand majesty ane gneat , And I prayed to Him beforeHim and in the pnesence of the whole land, on behalfof my son, the painter, Nakht-Amen, when he lay sickand nean un to dea th , be ing in the power o f Amenbecause of his deeds.

I found the Lond of Lords coming as a northwind andthat sweet breezes went befone Him. And He nescuedmy son, Nakht-Amen, the vindicated, the son of God'spainten in the Place-of-Tnuth, Neb-Ra, and of the ladyPeshed, both of whom stand vindicated.

Neb-Ra says:

Though the senvant be inclined to make mistakes,the Lond is inclined to be merciful. The Lord of The-bes does not spend a whole day in angen. He is angryfon but a moment and none of i t nemains behind, Thewind tunns for us in His mency and Amen Ra comesback upon the bneeze. May youn spirit be always kind,may you always fongive. And may what has once beentunned away not come back to us.

This stela, then, I wi l l make in youn name and I shal lrecond this hymn of praise on it in writing. For yousaved fon me my son, Nakht-Amen. I spoke to you andyou heard me. Now, behold I do what I promised. Fonyou are the Lond to the one who calls on you and Hewho is satisf ied with nighteousness.

l l l .

Amen Ra i s the he lmsman who knows the wa te rwell , He is the rudden fon the weak. He gives bread tothose who have none, and sustains those who senveHim in His temple.

1 7

I take not the powerful as a protecton. I dependno t on those w i th wear th . And I p lace no t my r i feunder the strong arm of another. For my wealth andstrength are in the house of my Lond. My t-oro is mypno tec to r ; I know H is m igh t . l ndeed , He i s a he lperstrong of arm and none is truly stnong but He.

Amen Ra is He who knows compassion who heank-ens to those who cal l Him. Amen Ra, Lord of Lords.The Bull of gneat strength who del ights in mightiness.

lv.My heart longs to behold you, O' Lond of the acacia

trees. My heant desines to see you O' Amen Ra. youane the protecton of the humble and needy, a fatherand mothen to the orphan, a husband to the widow.

Sweet it is to speak youn name, it is like the tasteof l i fe, yes, l ike the taste of bnead bo a chi ld, l ike thebreath of freedom to the captive.

Turn yourself to us, O' Etennal One, who was henebefone any other ex is ted. Though you make for medankness, yet cause l ight to shine on me lhat I maysee you. As youl' soul endures fon eternity and as yourbeautiful and beloved face lasts forever, may you comefrom afar and let me see you. To worship you O' Ra,is good. You are, O' Lord, great to seek, for if foundyou turn away all fean. Place joy, 0' Ra, in the heartsof the people. For happy are those who see you, O'Ra, and they nejoice each day.

V.

O' Amen Ra, you shepherd who br ings for th the

1 8

f lock in the morning, leading the hungny to green pas-tunes. As the shephend leads his f lock to gneen mead-ows, so do you, O' Ra, lead the needy to food. For Rais indeed a good shephend, neven idle, attending thosewho lean on Him.

O' Ra, I love you and I have f i l led my heart with you.You will nescue me fnom the mouth of the multitudeon the day when they speak lies against me. Fon theLond of Righteousness lives in nighteousness. Thus Iwill not dwell on bhe anxiety in my heart, fot' surelywhat Ra has said wil l come to pass.

vl.And Phanoah Ramesses l l surnounded on the batt le-

f ield by enemies and gneatly tnoubled pr-ayed saying:

Now I cal l on you from the ends of the eanth,O' Amen Ra. Al l that I have done was fon love of you,O' Fathen, Amen Ra, I cny out to you, fon I am in themidst of many enemies and the whole of this land isagainst me, I am alone and my only defense, for mymany soldiens have desented me; my chaniots nefusedto nemain with me. Though I cal led out to them, therewas none who responded to my cal l .

Now, I cny [o you O' Ra, and I f ind that you, Ra, anemore helpful to me than mil l ions of soldiens, mone thanhundneds o f thousands o f chan io ts . mone than thou-sands of bnothers and sons, al l put together. Fon bheeffort of many is naught compar.ed to Ehe majesty andmight of Amen Ra.

Then said Pharoah Ramesses ll: Now, though I pnay-ed in a distant land, my voice nesounded in southenn On.I found Amen Ra came when I called to Him. He gaveme His hand and . . . I found my heant stnong and full of

1 9

joy. And all I did succeeded.

vll.Pnaise to you, Amen Ra, who spoke with His mouth

and there came into being men, powens and pninciplesof the universe, cattle great and smail, and evenythingthat f l ies and al ights, al l of them.

You created even the banks of the Hanebu peoplewho sett le in thein cit ies and also the fruit ful meadowsfertil ized by the originat waters and giving birth there-a f te r to good th ings w i thou t number to suppon t a l lthat l ives.

You ane mighty as a shephend, tending al l people fona l l e tenn i t y . Bod ies a re f i l l ed w i th youn beau ty , andeyes see because of you. You inspire awe in evenyoneand Lhein hearts tunn to you, Fon you are good at al lt imes. And al l the wonld l ives from yout" presence.

Evenyone says: "We ane youns," the stnong and theweak togethen, the nich and the poon with one mouthand al l othens l ikewise. You are lovely in their hearts.And no body lacks some of youn beauty.

Do not the widows say: You ane oun husband, andthe small chi ldnen say you are our fathen and mothen?The rich boast wibh youn beauty and the poor revereyoun pnesence. The prisonen tunns to you and the sickcall out to you.

Youn name will be a protection for the body of any-one who is alone. l t is salvation and health fon thoseon the waEen and deliverance fnom the cnocodile. lt isgood to rememben Ra in the time of tunmoil, for He isa del iverance from the mouth of the aggnessive,

O' Ra, al l can tunn to you and place thein peti t ionsbefore you. Your eans are open to hean them and you

20

grant what they desine. You are the Creator wholoves those in His image, the shepherd who is fond ofHis flock.

vll l .Praise be to you O' Ra, Lord of Tnuth, whose sanc-

tuary is hidden, Lord of Londs. The Bringen-into-Beingin His sacred boat, who commanded and the powersand pr inc ip les of the universe came into being. TheCreaEor who cneated humankind and dist inguished theircharacters, who made their life, who made their colorsdiffenenr fnom each other,

Praise to Ba, He who hears the prisoner's prayen,beneficient of heart when one cal ls to Him. He whorescues the oppnessed from the oppnesson, who judg-es between the weak and the strong, Lord of Percep-tion, in whose mouth is authoniEy.

Fon love o f H im, the N i le comes . The Bene f i cenbOne, the greatly beloved, and when He comes the peo-ple live

O ' A lm igh ty One , Lo rd o f Londs , we nevere yourmight because you created us; we shout 1oy to youbecause you molded us; we offer you praise becauseyou weanied younself with us.

Pnaise be unto you, who did make al l of this; uniqueand only one with many hands who passes the nightawake while men and women sleep, seeking the bestfon His cneatunes.

lx.Pharoah Akhenaten sang praises saying:

2 1

You nise in beauty on the horizon of heaven, o' Liv-ing Aten, creator of life, when you l-ise on the eastennhorizon, you fil l eveny land with your- beauty. you areRa and you reach the limits of the lands and restrainthem fon your be loved son (Akhena ted . you makeseed gnow in women and cneate people fnom sperm.You feed the embnyo in the mothen's womb, soothingit to st i l l i ts teans.

How mani fofd are your works though h idden f romsight, o' sole God besides whom thene is none, youcneated earth according to youn desine, you alone. Al lpeoples, catt le and al l kinds of animals, al l on earththat walk on legs and al l on high rhat f ly with wings.You se t eveny person in h i s (hed p lace and sa t i J fythe i r needs . A l l have food and rhe i r t ime o f l i f e i sdetenmined. Their tongues dif fer in speech and so dotheir chanacters. The colors of their skins are dif fen-ent also. For you dist inguished the people. How excel-lent ane youn ways O' Lond of etennity.

X.Eveny city is under the shadow of Amen Ra, so that

His heart can move in that which He has loved. peoples ing Eo Ra unden eveny r -oo f , and eveny founda t ionsLands fir-m under His love. They celebrate for Himon fes t i va l days and pass the n igh t s t i l l awake a tmidnight

Ra is He who fnees one from evi l and drives awaysuffening, He is a docton who heals the eye wibhoutmedicine, who opens the eye and cunes squint ing, Hesaves whomeven He will even though they ane ah.eadyin the gnave.

He hears lhe pr.ayers of those who call on Him, andcomes in a moment from afar to those who cny out toH im,

22

He lengthens the span of life and shortens it andgives beyond what is allotted by fate to those whomHe chenishes,

Amen Ra is magic, words of power, over waterwhen His name is said above the deep. And the croco-dile has no power when a penson calls His name.

The winds change and the headwind moves anound.It grows calm when one remembens Ra. His name is auseful word in the time of tnouble, a gentle bneeze forone who calls on Him.

It is Ra who saves those who have come to grief, agentle God with effective counsel, He belongs to thosewho rest their back on Him when they are in theirhour of trouble.

He is more powerful than millions to those who setHim in their heart and one is mightier than the manythrough the power of His name. He is the compassion-abe protecton, the Beneficent One, one who makes nomistakes, and one whom humans cannot hold off.

xl.Amen Ra who was the f i rs t K ing, the God of the

earliest time and He who remains Ehe Pnime Ministenof the poor. Ra accepts no bribes fnom the guilty; Hetakes no tesbimony from the witness and pays noattention to one who promises. Amen Ra judges theland with a wave of His finger. He speaks to the heartand judges the guilty. And He assigns the guilty to thefire of the East and the righteous to Ehe peace of theWest.

Amen Ra, lend youn ean to Ehose who stand alonein court. They ane poor and not nich. And the countsextor t f rom them saying, "s i lver and gold for thec le rks and c lo thes fon the a t tendan ts . " May you ,

Amen, appear as pnime ministen and let the poor gofree. May the poor be vindicated and their just ne.ooutweigh wealth."

xll.Pharoah Piankhi inst ructed h is men before bat t le

praising the powen of Amen Ra and saying:

when you arrive at Thebes, before Karnak, you shallenter the water and bathe yourself. you shall dress rnfine clothing, unstring your bows and set aside yourarrows. Let no overlond or ruler boast of being mighty.For there is no strength fon the mighty without AmenRa. He makes Ehe weak-armed into the strong-armed,so that the multitudes flee from the feeble and onealone takes a thousand capt ive. Anoint yourselves,then, with the waters of His altars and bow down tothe eanth before Him and say "Make for us a waythat we might fight in the shadow of your sword. Forwhen the young men you have sent forth launch theirattack, the multitudes flee from Ehem."

xll l.Montemhet, the Prophet of Amen Fla, prayeC saying:

Homage to you, O' Amen Ra, maker of humankind,God who created all beings. Beneficent King, First Oneof Egypt, The Two Lands, who conceived in His heantand mind the eternity which He created. One great inpower, awesome in His might, whose forms are exaltedabove al l other divine powers. The Most Strong whosbrikes down Ehe violators of the Law, whose hornattacks the doers of evil. I rely on your name. May it be

24

my physician. May it eliminate my body's illness and driveaway all pain from me.

May Ra put love of me in the hearEs of the peopleso that al l may be fond of me. May He grant me agood burial in the cemeteny of my city. For bhe sacnedland is in His grasp. May He make my name last likethe stars of heaven and my monument last like thoseof His fo l lowers. May my d iv ine essence be nemem-bened in His temple day and night. May I renew myyouth like the moon and may my name not be forgot-ten in the yeans that come forever after.

a5

TheBook Of The Moral Narrative

THE BOOK OF THE MORAL NARHATIVE. Although thereare other moral narratives in ancient Egyptian sacred wis-dom, none is so clear, beautiful and definit ive as the Book ofKhun-Anup. This Book is called "The Eloquent Peasant" bytnaditional egyptologists, However, I have chosen to call it bythe name of the man who is i ts central character andspokesman, a peasant or farmen who is unjustly treated andappeals for relief, justice and nighteousness fr"om the HighS t e w a r d , F l e n s i , w h o h a n d l e d s u c h m a t t e r s . B e n s i i simpressed with Khun-Anup's eloquence and reponts it to bhepharoah. The pharoah impressed by the nepont asks Flensi todelay ruling on the case in order to benefit from Khun-Anup'sbeautiful speech which in ancient Egypt as in othen parts ofAfnica was/is highly appreciated. Rensi was also ondered totake care of Khun-Anup's family for the days he kept Khun-Anup waiting for a decision and to meticulously copy down allhe said.

What follows is a senies of nine petit ions made by Khun-Anup for just ice and r ighteousness or as the Egypt ianscalfed both, maat. As stated in the intnoduction to the Bookof Knowing the Creations, maat was the foundation of boththe natural and social order, lts cone concept is nightness innature and righteousness (which makes an onder or systemright) in human society. Although traditional egyptologiststranslate maat mostly as justice in this narrative, I tnanslateit mostly as righteousness. For among the three most usedmeanings - tnuth, iustice and righueousness - righteous-ness seems to me to be the most comprehensive and inclu-sive tenm and suggests and necessi tates both tnuth andjustice.

29

Khun-Anup appears to Rens i ' s sense o f r igh teousness ,t ru th and jus t i ce , fo r maat was seen in anc ien t Egypt iansoc ie ty as the sp i r i t and method o f o rgan iz ing and con-ducting the relations of human society. ThE phanoah and hiss o c i e t y w e n e t h e s y m b o l a n d e m b o d i m e n t o f m a a t a n djudges, as the representatives of the pharoah, wore on theinchest an image of the divine powen, Maat, (see above) point-ing it towand the vindicated in a case. Khun-Anup begins byp r a i s i n g R e n s i , p h a r o a h ' s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e , a s o n e w h odestroys falsehood and brings nighteousness, and challengeshim to win etennal l i fe by his righteousness. He subsequ"ntlycrit icizes him for not acting acconding to maat. But in theend a judgment is rendered in Khun-Anup's favon.

The language of the narnative is fulr of nautical and meas-urement terminology. This is because religion is reflective ofa peop le 's soc ia l l i fe . Anc ien t Egypt ian l i fe was grea t lyshaped by activit ies on and anound the Nile and by agricul-tural activit ies such as plowing, hanvesting and measuringgrain. Thus, the phanoah and his representative are seen asthe helmsman of the ship of state and are wished good sail-ing, Likewise, they ane seen as the balance on scares whichshould not t i l t, Ehe plummet which should not stray or thetongue tha t shou ld no t swerve - les t the sys tem i tse l fbecome unbalanced and the social orden be interrupted andupset. The appreciation for the balance on weighing comesa lso f rom re fenence to the sacned Ba lance in wh ich theheant of the depanted and nisen wil l be weighed on the Dayof Judgment. (see below the Books of Rising Like Ral.

30

TheBook of Khun-Anup

Then Khun-Anup said to the High Steward, Rensi:

l .

When you embark on the Lake of Maat (truth, justiceand nighteousness). May you sail on it with a good wind.May no stonm tean away your sai l nor your boat lagbehind. May no misfortune fall on your mast and mayyoun mainstays not snap. May you not run agnound northe cunnent carny you away. May you not taste the evilsof the niven nor see a face of fean. And may the fishcome quickly to you and plump birds gather around you,For you ane the father of the orphan, the husband ofthe widow, the bnother of the divorced woman and aproEecEive garment for the motherless.

L e t m e r a i s e u p y o u n n a m e i n t h i s l a n d a s t h eembodiment of every good law. For you are, a leaderwithout gneed, a great man free of baseness, one whodes tnoys f a l sehood and bn ings n igh teousness in tobeing, one who comes at the voice of the cal ler, WhenI speak may you hear me. Grant me just ice, O' Praise-w o n t h y O n e t o w h o m t h o s e w h o a r e p r a i s e d g i v epnaise. Put an end to my oppression, for I am greatlybundened. Count me and you wil l f ind me lacking.

l l .

A montal man dies along with his dependents but wi l lyou be a man of etennity by your righteousness? ls itnot wnong when a balance t i l ts, a plummet strays, andthe s tna igh t becomes cnooked? Lo , j us t i ce has f l edfnom you, dniven fnom its place, The judges do wnongand n igh t -speech has become one-s ided , The judgestake what has been stolen. He who should set mat-

3 1

tens right makes things go wnong. He who should givebneath chokes one who is on the ground and he whoshould make breathing easier makes one gasp fon ain.The mediator is a robber and he who should destroyneed , commands i t s cnea t ion . The town i s i t s ownfloodwaten and he who should combat evi l , commitscnimes himself,

Bedress is short but misfortune is long and a gooddeed neturns to those who do it, This is the pnecept:Do to the doen tha t he o r she may a lso do . l t i sthank ing one fon wha t one may do , b lock ing a b lowbefone i t str ikes and giving an assignment to one whois ski l l ful , Be a shelten and make your shore safe. Seehow your whanf is covened with cnocodiles. Let yourtongue speak stnaight and not go astnay.

l l l .

Punish the nobben and save those who suffen. Donot be a flood against the petitionen. Be aware of theappnoach of eternity. Desire to l ive long, fon as i t issaid: Doing r ight is breath for the nose. Punish thosewho desenve punishment and none wil l equal youn r ight-eousness. Answer not good with evil and put not onething in the place of anothen,

The balancing of the land l ies in Maat - truth, just-ice and nighteousness. Do not speak falsely fon youare great; do not act lightly for. you have weight; benot untrue fon you are the balance and do not swenvefon you ane the standard. You are on the level withthe balance, l f i t t i l ts, then, you wil l lean too. Do notdri f t , rathen steen. Do not nob, nather act against thenobber. For one is not really great, if he is gneat withgneed. l f you tunn youn face fnom violence, who wil lpunish wnongdoing?

lv.Thene is none quick of speech who is fnee of hasty

words and none light of heant and mind whose thoughtshave weight. Be patient that you may leann nighteous-ness and nestnain your angen for the good of one whoentens humbly. No one hasty achieves excellence andone who is impatient is not leaned on. Let your eyessee and your heart take notice. Do not act harshly withyoun power lest a misfortune fall on you,

Helmsman, do not let youn ship go astray. Life-given,do not let the people die. Pnovider, do not let the peo-p le penish f rom need. Shade, do not le t the peoplebecome dny in the sun. Protecton, do not let the cnoc-odi les seize the people and dnag them away.

V.Rob not the poon of the in goods, the,humble whom

you know, Fon the poon 's be long ings ane bnea th tothem and to take them away is to stop up thein nose.

vt.One who lessens falsehood encounages tnuth. One

who supponts good diminishes evi l - even as satisfac-t i on comes and ends hungen and c lo th ing nemovesnakedness; even as the sky becomes calm af ter astonm and warms al l who are cold; even as f ine cooksthat which is naw and water quenches fhinst. He whocheats diminishes just ice. But lust ice nightly given nei-Ehen fal ls shont non bnims oven. Do not delay; deal withthe matten at hand. l f you sepanaLe who wil l join? Thesounding pole is in youl- hand, take the measunements.

33

sure ly the wa ten i s sha i low. And i f t he boa t runsaground, i ts cango wil l not on shone.

vil.Be patient so that one may cai l on you concer-nrng

his on he. just cause. Do not be angny io. i t does notbecome you. The bnooding face becomes easi ly upset,Bnood not on what has not yet happened, nor rejoiceoven wha t has no t ye t come to pass . pa t ience pno_longs fniendship and disposes of a pasb concern, forone does not know what is in the heart. l f the law isundenminded and o rder des t royed , the poor canno tsurvive' Fo' when they ane nobbed just ice does notapply to them,

vilt.People fal l low thnough gneed. Those who prey on

othens achieve no real success. Thein success is, int ru th , a loss , Though you ane g reedy , i t y ie lds younothing; though you steal you do not benefi t by ib. Actr ighteously fon the Lor"d of Righteousness whose r ight-eousness is r ighteousness indeed. When goodness isgood, it is truly good. Sur.ely, r.ighteousness is fon eten-nity. lt goes bo the gnave with those who do it. Whenthey ane bunied and the eanth envelops them, thein nameis not enased fnom the face of the eanth. They ar.enemembened because of their goodness, For this is apninciple established by the wond of God. Speak nightand do right. For righteousness is mighty. lt is greaE itendunes; its wonth is neal and it leads one to blessed-ness. Wrongdoing does not achieve i ts goal , but onewho is nighteous neaches dny land,

tx.T h e t o n g u e i s a p e r s o n ' s b a l a n c e a n d i t i s t h e

ba lance wh ich d iscovers de fec ts , Pun ish those whoshou ld be pun ished and none sha l l equa l youn n igh t -e o u s n e s s . W h e n f a l s e h o o d w a l k s a n o u n d i t g o e sastnay. lt does not cross over in the ferry nor does ibgo forwand. One who becomes nich by i t has no chi l-dren or heirs on earth. Those who sail with it do notneach dry land and their boat does not drop anchon atthe inbended town.

Be not too heavy nor yet too light. Do not delay orbe foo hasty. Be not partial non listen to pure emo-tion, Do not burn youn face fnom one whom you know.Be not blind to one whom you have seen and do notreject one who peti t ions you. Abandon this sluggish-ness and let your speech be heand. Act for one whoacts for you. Do not l isten to evenyone, but cal l thosewho have a just cause, The slow and idle have no heri-tage; one deaf to tnuth has no fniends and those whoane gneedy have no holiday.

35

Books Of Wise lnstnuction

THE BOOKS OF WISE INSTRUCTION. Cer- ta in ly one of themost important and well-written kinds of sacred l iteratune ofancient Egypt are the Books of Wise Instruction. Althoughsome tnaditional egyptologists would argue that the Instnuc-tions are more secular than sacred, evidence does not sup-pont such a conten t ion . One assumes they came to th isconclusion because the lnstructions offer explicit l i fe-lessonsof how to conduct oneself, alone and with others. Howeven,if that is their main angument - and it seems to be from allreadings - then they would have to nule the Book of Prov-erbs secu lan . Fon no t on ly does i t con ta in s imi lan ins t ruc-tions, but also it was based on the ancienL Egyptian modeland borrowed whole passages from the Book of Amenomopelsee below).

The Books of Wise lnstruction ane as sacred as any ofthe other books of lhe Husia, for the main focus is on maatand the mora l and sp i r i tua l ob l iga t ion each penson has inpreserving and practicing it in and for the community. Thus,each person, not lust the pharoah, was urged to pneserveand prac t ice maat , Fon he or she was judged by i t andgranted long life on eanth as well as eternal l i fe in Amenta(panadise) or death and non-existence based on this.

Therefore, Ptah-hotep says, "Maat is great, its value islasting and it has remained unchanged and unequaled sincethe time of its Creator." lt is, he continues, "a plain patheven fo r bhe ignonant and those who v io la te i t s laws anepunished." Thus, he unges monal excellence in all one does"so no fau l t can be found in your chanacter " . L ikewise ,Kheti, tells his son Merikare that "righteousness is f itt ingfor a rulen" and that he should "do that which is right that

39

you may l i ve long on ear th" , Fon "more acceptab le i s thebnead of Ehe righteous than the ox of those who do evil".

cleanly bhen, maat, uhe quintessen[ial monal and spiriuualconcept o f anc ien t Egypt ian sacred l i te r -a tu re , fonms Lhecone focus of the Instructions even though some rather sec-ular situations and solutions ane posed. Moreoven, given theinseparable l ink in ancient Egypt and othen pants of Afr-icabetween the sacred and seculan, the attempt to separatethem makes liLtle sense and meets with even less success.Thus, the sages teach their chi ldren and the people to th inkmaat, speak maat and do maat in seculan and sacred situa-t ions. For th is wi l l not only insure a mutual ly benef ic ia l com-munity based on maat, but also everlasting l ife,

In tenms o f bhe names o f the Books , I have made twochanges in names wh ich shou ld be no ted . F i r "s t , the bookcalled the "lnstructions for Merikare" by traditional egyptolo-gists is re-tit led "The Book of Kheti", This was done becauseit is relatively centain the pharoah who wrote it was namedK h e t i a n d t h e " B o o k f o n M e r i k a r e " w o u l d b e i n c o n s r s r e n tw i t h t h e o t h e r ' " B o o k s o f " , S e c o n d l y , t h e b o o k c a l l e d t h ePapyrus Insingen by traditional egyptologists is ne-tit led theBook of Phebhor after its authon. The traditional egyptolo-gists and collector-s had the nather- unsettl ing and even arro-gant habi t of naming ancient Egypt ian papyni by the name ofs o m e o n e w h o b o u g h t t h e m " o r c a m e i n t o p o s s e s s i o n o fthem" by var ious means, Thus, Insinger. , Hanr" is, Beatty, etc. ,ane affixed to papyri which often have their own names. Nat-urally, I saw no need or reason to follow chis pnactice.

40

TheBook of Ptah-Hotep

t.Be not arnogant because of youn knowledge. Take

counsel with the ignonant as well as with the wise.Fon the l im i t s o f knowledge in any f i e ld have neverbeen set and no one has even neached them. Wisdomis nanen than emenalds, and yet i t is found among thewomen who gathen at the gnindstones.

l l .

l f you ane a leader and command many, stnive fonexcel lence in al l you do so Lhat no fault can be foundin youn chanacten. Fon Maat - the way of Tnuth, Jus-t ice and Righteousness - is gneab; i ts value is last ingand i t has nemained unequalled and unchanged sincethe t ime of i ts Creaton. l t l ies as a plain pabh befoneeven the ignonant and bhose who violabe its laws anep u n i s h e d . A l t h o u g h w i c k e d n e s s m a y g a i n w e a l t h ,wnong-do ing has neven bnough t i t s wares to a sa fepor-t. In the end, i t is Maat, the way of Tnuth, Jusl iceand Righteousness that endunes and enables theupn igh t to say " l t i s the legacy o f my fa ther andmothen. "

i lr.Do not terrorize people for. i f you do, God wil l punish

you accondingly. l f anyone l ives by such means, Godwil l take bread fnom his on her" mouth. l f one says Ishal l be r ich by such means, she wil l evenLually have

4 1

to say my means have entnapped me. l f one says I wi l lnob anothen, he wil l end up being robbed himself. Theplans of men and women do not always come to pass,fon in the end i t i s the w i l l o f God wh ich p reva i l s .Thenefone, one should l ive in peace with othens andthey will come and willingly give gifts which anotherwould take from them through fear.

tv.Be di l igent as long as you l ive, always doing mone

than is commanded of you. Do not misuse your t imewhile fol lowing youn heart, for i t is offensive to thesoul to waste one's t ime. Do not lose the dai ly oppon-tunity to incnease that which you have. Di l igence pno-duces gains and gains do not endure when di l igence isabandoned.

V.l f you are parents of wonth and wisdom, tnain youn

childnen so that they wil l be pleasing to God. And i fthey do what is r ight, fol lowing yout ' example, and han-dle yout ' affains as they should, do fon them al l that isgood. Fon they are begotten of yout' own heart andsoul, Thenefone, sepanate noL youn heart fnom lhem.But i f they fai l to fol low your counse, oppose your wil l ,reject al l counsel, and se[ their mouth in motion withv i le wonds, then dnive them away. Fon they ane notyoun chi ldnen and were not bonn for you. Those whoane gu ided do no t go wnong , bu t those who w i l fu l l ylose their way wil l not f ind a str"aight counse.

42

vl.l f you move among people, gain nespect and tnust

thnough speaking openly and tnuthful ly. Those who anetnusted and speak tnuthful ly, wi l l become leaders andmastens of themselves.Those who masten themselvesenjoy a good name and ane not mal igned. They ane ingood health and their face is turned towand thein peo-ple. And they ane pnaised without Ehein knowing i t . Butthose whose hean t obeys base des ines causes con-tempt na then than love . The i r hean t d im in ishes andthein body dwindles. Those of greaL heant ane the cho-sen of God, but those who obey base desines, becomebhe possession of the enemy.

vll.l f you are a leaden, see that the plans you make ane

cannied out. Do gneat things which wil l be nememberedlong after you. Whene thene is pnaise, detnaction can-nol sunvive. But whene those of i l l -wi l l enten. l ike croc-odi les, str i fe also comes.

vli l .l f you are a leaden, be counteous and l isten careful ly

to the presentat ions of pet i t ioner .s , Stop not the i r -speech unti l they have pouned out their heant and spo-ken tha t wh ich they came to say . Those w i th g r . i ev -ances l ike to speak out and have their peti t ions heard.But whosoeven sfops a pnesentation naises the ques-t ion o f why does one hav ing th i s powen ac t i n th i smannen. Not al l that is asked fon can be granted, buta fain hearing satisf ies the heart.

lx.lf you want friendship to last in the house you enter

as masten, fniend on bnothen, or in any other place youen ten , avo id appnoach ing the women in an impnopenmannen, No place is peaceful whene this is done andhe who intnudes on them is unwelcome, Thousands ofmen have been ru ined for the p leasure of a shontmoment, which passes l ike a dream and then bringsd e a t h t o t h o s e w h o h a v e i n d u l g e d i n i t . M e n a n dwomen leave home because of i t and the heart shouldrefnain fnom it. As for those who go wnong because oflust, none of thein plans wil l pnospen,

X.l f you wish your conduct to be perfect, to be free

fnom al l that is evi l , guand against the vice of gneedfor matenial things. l t is a gnievous sickness and thereis no cune fon i t . Thene can be no confidence amongthose infected with i t . l t tunns a kind fniend into a bit-ten enemy. l t causes confl ict with fathens, moLhersand the bnothens of mothers and rt separates the wifefrom her husband. l t is a bundle of al l kinds of evi l anda bag containing vices of every kind. Establ ished anethose whose s tandand i s r i gh teousness , who wa lka c c o r d i n g t o i t s w a y s . T h e y s h a l l s u n e l y p r o s p e ntheneby, but the greedy will not have even a grave.

xl.l f you are wise and seek to make youn house stable,

love youn w i fe fu l l y and n igh teous ly . G ive her food ,clothes and oi l fon hen body and make her happy as

long as you l ive. For she is ofhusband. Be not bnutal to her..ation witl influence her bettert ion to what she wishes, aimsThus, she wil l nemain with you.cal l hen and show hen youn love.

great value to you herKindness and considen-than fonce. Pay atten-ab and negands highly.

Open youn anms to hen;

xll.Shane w i th youn fn iends tha t wh ich you have , fon

that which is youns is a gif t of God. Those who fai l toshare with thein fniends ane shunned fon having a self-i sh sou l . A l though peop le m igh t p lan fo r tomonnow,they do not know what wil l come to pass, But i t isnighteousness by which people ane sustained. Thene-fone, i f misfontune comes and you have been nighteouswibh youn fniends, youn fniends wil l welcome you. peacewil l not be found in a city where fniends ane fongottenand thein needs not answened.

xil t.l f you ane one of worth and wisdom who stts on a

counc i l o f govennance , app ly your hear t and m indtoward that which is wise. Speak only when you knowyou can ass is t i n the so lu t ion o f a d i f f i cu l t y . Forsi lence is betten than useless chatter. Ther"e is an antlo giving sound advice in counci l , Sunely ib is mone dif-f icult than al l othen duties. Those who gnasp this canmake i t serve them well .

45

XIV.l f you ane a powenful penson, gain nespect through

knowledge and gentleness of speech and conduct. Givecommands on ly whene necessany and f i t t i ng , Thosewho abuse the in au thor i t y pnovoke nes is tance . Andthose who place themselves above others ane broughtlow. Be not si lent when i t is youl- duty to speak, buLbe cautious in youn speech lest you offend. When youanswen the angny , show se l f - con t r "o l . Fon Lhe angnyheant speaks f ier-y wonds, but those who walk gently,the in pa th i s a lneady paved . Moneoven , those whoworny al l day wil l have no happy moment. But thosewho punsue pleasune al l day wil l not be able to sustainthemselves.

XV.l f you ane a judge chosen to maintain orden among

the people, handle mattens with a stnict sense of just-ice. Do nob lean to one side on the other' . Take caretha t no one comp la ins tha t you ane un fa in and youractions nesult in a judgment against you,

XVI.l f you ane angered by a wnong done you by anothen,

lean not towand nemembening i t , but toward nighteous-ness, Pass oven i t quickly and do not hold i t in yout-heant aften the f irst day i t happens.

46

XVII.lf you have gnown gneat after having lived in a lowly

condition, and have gained wealth aften having beenpoor in youn town in the past, fonget not how it waswith you in fonmen t imes. Tnust not in youn wealth,which came to you as a g i f t o f God. And put notbehind you another who is youn equal and to whom thesame has happened.

xvlll.Be genenous as long as you live. what goes into the

stonehouse should come out, Fon bread is made Lo bes h a n e d . T h o s e w h o s e b e l l i e s a r e e m p t y t u n n i n t oaccusens and those who ane depr ived become oppo-nents. see that none such as these ane your- neigh-bors. Generosity is a memoniar fon those who show it ,long aften they have departed.

XIX.Know those who ane faithful to you and do not mis-

t rea t those who ane your f r i ends . They ane a we l l -wa te red f i e ld to you and more va ruab le than g rea tr i ches . For wha t be longs to one f r i end be longs toano ther . The charac ten o f a n igh teous penson i s anhonon to him or her and a thing of varue which is longremembered,

47

XX.lf nespect for night exists in the heant of those who

have been se t i n au thor i t y , they w i l l be bene f i cen ta lways and the in w isdom sha l l endune fo reven . Theheant of the wise reloices when wisdom is estabrishedand is happy when it pnospers on earth. The wise aneknown by the in w isdom and the g rea t by the in goodactions. Thein heant is in harmony with thein tongue,the i r l i ps a re tnue when they speak , the in eyes seerightly and their ears hear that which is profitable fortheir chi ldnen, so that they may do what is r ight andare free fnom unnighteousness,

XXI.lf a son and daughten accept the righteaus teach-

i n g s o f t h e i n p a n e n t s , n o n e o f t h e i n p l a n s w i l l g ownong . Teach youn ch i ldnen , then , to be those whohear well ; Lhey wil l be valued by those of weight andsubstance and their speech wil l be informed by whatthey have heand, Respected ane those who l isten well ,they wil l excel and thein deeds wil l dist inguish them,But fai lune wil l fol low those who hean not, The wisewake eanly in onden to establish themselves, but foolsalways fail to nise at the oppontune time.

48

TheBook of Kagemni

t.The modest penson is stnong and one who is

wond and just in deed is pnaised. Houses aneto the humble and a wide seat is given to onegentle in speech and conduct. But sharp knivesneady fon the unr ighteous in t ruden. Fon thereentnance except for the r ighteous,

true inopenedwho isstandi s n o

l l .

Those who ane blameless in mattens of conduct, nowonds can prevail against them. And those who areself-mastered, the harsh ane kinden to them than theirown mothers, and al l people become thein senvants.Let your name go fonth, then, while you younself, anesi lenb and you wil l be necognized and nespected.

l l l .

Be not annogant among youn peens because of yourstnength. And bewane of act ing in such a way toencounage oppos i t i on . For one knows no t wha t w i l lcome to pass or the things God wil l do to punish theevil.

49

TheBook of Kheri

t.Be ski l led in speech so that you wil l succeed. The

tongue of a man is his sword and effect ive speech isstnongen than al l f ighting. None can ovencome the ski i l -fu l , A w ise penson i s a schoo l fon the nob les andthose who ane aware of his knowledge do not attackhim. No evi l takes place when he is near, Truuh comesto him in i ts essential fonm, shaped in the sayings ofthe ancestons.

i l .

Follow in the footsteps of youn ancestons, fon themind is tnained thnough knowledge, Behold, their wondsendune in books, Open and read them and fol low theirwise counsel. Fon one who is taught becomes ski l led.Do not be evi l fon kindness is good. Make the memonyo f you las t thnough love o f you . Mu l t i p l y the peop lewhom the city sheltens, then God wil l be pnaised fonyour- donations. And the people wil l . . . give thanks fonyoun goodness and pnay fon youn health.

l l l .

Advance your officials so that they will act by yourlaws . One who has abundance a t home w i l l no t bebiased, One has wealth when he on she has no wants.A poor person may not speak Eruly and one who says"l wish I had" is not stnaightfonwand. He leans towand

h im who w i l l pay h im. Tnu ly g rea t i s a gnea t pensonwhen his men and women of statune ane gneat. strongis the king who has counci l lons and wealthy is one whois nich in persons of statune.

lv.Speak tnuth in your house that the princes of the

eanth may nespect you. Righteousness is f i t t ing for anulen. For i t is the front of the house that inspiresrespect in the back. Do that which is right that youmay l ive long upon the earth. Comfort the weepen andoppress not the widow. Dnive no one away from theproperty of his or hen fathen, Defnaud not the noblesof thein pnopenty. Bewane of punishing unjustly. Do notki l l fon i t wi l l not pr"of i t you,

V.Make no dist inct ion in your behavior between those

of rank and the common people, Rathen choese a pen-son because of his on her ski l ls so that every craftmay be cannied on.

vl.One genera t ion succeeds ano ther and God who

knows human natune is hidden, One cannot avoid oroppose the hand of God. He neaches al l that the eyessee. Thus, one should nevene God on his path Asa dry watercourse is replaced by a stneam, so no nivera l lows i t se l f to be concea led . l b bneaks the bann ienbehind which it was hidden, So too the soul comes to

5 1

the place that it knows and sErays not from its fonmerpath.

vll.Make wonthy your house in the west and make firm

your place in the city of the depanted by being upnightand just. l t is on this that the hearts of men and womenrely. For mone acceptable is the virtue of the righteousthan the ox of those that do evif.serve God thati" ,.yalso wonk for you.

vilt.well caned for is humankind who are the f locks of

God. He made the sky and earth for their sake. Hedestroyed the dangers of the waten. He gave thebneath of l i fe fon thein noses, They are in nis imageand came f rom H is body . He sh ines in the sky fontheir sake. He made plants fon them and catt le, f ishand fowl to nounish them. He has ki l led His enemiesand neduced His chi ldnen when they conspined to nebelagainst Him, He makes dayl ight for their sakes and Hesails around in His sacred boat so that He can seethem. He has bui l t His shnine anound them and whenthey weep He heans. He made for them nulers evenfnom the egg, leaders to fift the load from the back ofthe weak. He made fon them words of power as weap-ons to ward off the blow of evil events, guanding themby day and by night. He has slain the traitons amongthem as a man s tn ikes h is son fo r the sake o f h i sbnother. Fon God knows eveny name.

52

TheBook of Ani

l .

Do not go in and out of the court of just ice so thatyour name may no t be so i led , Do no t con tend in aquarnel. Keep si lent and i t wi l l serve you well . Go notin the pnesence of a dnunkard even if it promises tobning you honor.

i l .

Pour l ibation fon youn fathen and mothen who nest inthe val ley of the dead. God wil l witness your act ionand accept it. Do not fonget to do this even when youare away fnom home. For as you do for your panents,youn chi ldnen wil l do fon you also.

l l l .

Do not fnequent tavenns lesL ev i l wor-ds fa l l f romyour mouth and you know not what you ane saying, lfyou fal l , your l imbs may be bnoken and thene wil l be noone to help you. Even youn dninking companions mays t a n d u p a n d s a y " P u t t h e d n u n k a n d o u t . " l f o n ecomes to seek and talk with you, one wil l f ind you lyingon the gnound as i f you wene a l i t t le chi ld.

53

lv.When the messengen of death comes to take you,

let him f ind you neady to go to your nesting place, say_ing "Here comes one pnepar.ed befone you. ' ; Do not saythen "l am too young to be taken." Fo. death comesand seizes the baby at his on hen mothen's bneast aswell as the man and woman who have r-eached an oldage.

V.Guand aga ins t wonds and deeds o f decep t ion and

against wonds that ane untnue. Destnoy the desine todo and speak evi l within you, fon the evi l man have nonest.

vr.Stay away fnom the aggnessive man and take him

not fon a companion. Take then for a fr- iend one who istrue and just, one whose actions you have obsenved.And i f your n igh teousness equa ls h is o l . hens , younfniendshrp wil l be balanced.

vil.Smal l g i f t s ne tunn g rea te r and wha t i s rep laced

bnings abundance. The wise live off the house of thefool. Pnotect what is yours and you wil l always f ind i t .Be watchfu l o f what you own lest you end up as abeggan, One who is always idle amounts to nothing butone who is di l igent is honored.

vll l .l f God granbs you chi ldren, may the heant of thein

fathen and mother know them. Whoeven hungens, letthem be sa t i s f i ed in the house o f the in mothen andfa ther . Le t them f ind thene a wa l l wh ich pno tec tsthem, Be not without a genenous heant fon i t is Godwho gives you wealth.

lx.Do not si t when one who is olden than you is stand-

ing, even i f you have achieved a highen status in your'pnofession. No fault is found with good chanacten butan evi l characten is always blamed.

X.Walk each day in the way of nighteousness and you

wi l l reach the p lace to wh ich you ane go ing . Nevenspeak evil wonds to any visitons; a wond spoken cane-lessly some day when you are gossiping may oventunnyour house . l f you ane found genenous in t imes o fprospenity, when adversity comes you wil l be able tobean it. lf you ane nighteous you will be recognized andnespected. And, whether you are among many on few,you wil l f ind youn family and fniends, and al l you wishwil l be gnanbed.

55

xl.Let not your heant be reveared to s tnangens rest

they use youn wonds against you. offensive wonds thatcome fnom your mouth, i f nepeated, can make bit tenenemies. A penson can be nuined by his on hen tongue.Take care and you wil l fare well . The heant of humansis w ide as a s tonehouse and fu i l o f answens o f a r lk inds ' choose then those tha t a re good and speakthem and keep those tha t ane bad encrosed in yourbel ly. A hansh answer pnovokes stnife, but one whospeaks with gentleness is loved.

xll.

. Double the gifts youl" mothen gave you and cane fonher as she cared of you. she bone a heavy bunden inyou and did not abandon you. when she bnought youfonth after youn months, she was st i l l bound closely toyou. Fon hen bneasts wene stiil in your- mouth for thr-eeyeans. while you grew, she cleaned your- f i l th wi ihoutdisgusb in hen heart and without saying "o, rvhat can Ido?" she p laced you in schoor to be educa ted andcame thene dai ly on your behalf with bnead and beenfor your teachen. Thus, when you become a young manand marny a wife and establ ish youn house, lose nots igh t o f youn own ch i ldhood . Ra ise youn ch i ldnen asyoun mothen d id you . Do no t l e t he r f i nd fau l t w i thyou, lest she naise her hands to God against you andGod hear hen complaints and punish you.

xll l .Eat no t bnead wh i le ano then s tands by w i thou t

extending youn hand to him or hen. As fot ' food, i t isalways hene, i t is man and woman who do nor remain.A person may be nich on poon but bread remains withthose who share it, One who was nich last yean maybe a vagrant this yean. Thenefone, be noL anxious tofill youn belly without regard for others. Fon you knownot whene your course wil l lead. l f you become needy,another may do good by you. The waten counse of lastyear has d isappeaned and th i s yean ano then s tneamhas appeared in its place. Gneat watens have becomet rac ts o f dny land and seashones have d isappearedinto the ocean depths. No man on woman, then, walksa single way. This is a lesson fnom the Lord of Life.

XIV.Do not onden your wife around in her house when

you know she keeps i t in excel lent order. Do not askher "whene is it" on say to her "bning it to us" whenshe has put i t in the propen place. Wabch hen careful lyand keep s i l en t and you w i l l see how we l l she man-ages. How happy is your house when you support her,Thene ane many men who do not know this. But i f aman nefrains from provoking strife at home, he will notsee its inception. Thus, every man who wishes to mas-ter his house, must f i rst master his emotions.

5 7

XV.Answer not elders who ane angry. Let them have

thein way. speak sweetly when they speak bit tenly, Foni t i s a nemedy tha t soo thes the hean t . con ten t iousanswens pnovoke strife and eventually youn will will bebroken. Let not your heant be tnoubled, fon they wil lsoon netunn to pnaise you when thein houn of nage haspassed. When your wonds please the heant, the heartis incl ined to accept them. seek serf-masteny Lhen andyour self-mastery will subdue them.

TheBook of Amenomope

t.Bewane of robbing the poon and of oppnessing the

weak and helpless. Raise not yout" hand against theaged non addness an elden with impnoper speech. Letnot yourself be sent on an evi l mission non stand inthe company of those who have penfonmed it . Ragenot against those who injune you, non on your accountanswen them. The wharf falls fr^om unden the wickedand a f lood of waten washes them away, The nonthwind comes down to end thein houn on ear-th and tunnsinto a tempest; the thunder noars and the crocodilescome without mercy,

l l .

Le t us s teen a n igh teous counse so tha t we maycarry the wicked acnoss without becoming like them.Raise them up, give them youn hand and then, leavethem in the hands of God. Fill them with the food ofyour kindness that they might be satisifed and repent,Anofher th ing good in the hear t o f God is that youpause and think befone speaking.

l l l .

Do not argue wi th the content ious, non provokethem with wonds. Pause before those who intenruptand give way to those who venbally attack you. Sleepa night before speaking. For the unrestnained pensonis l ike a stonm which bursts forth l ike a f lame in a pi leof straw.

lv.Now, the unnestnained man or woman in the temple

is l i ke a tnee g rown in un fe r t i l e gnound , l t s l eaveswither quickly and i ts unnipe fruit fal ls to the earth. l tneaches i ts end in the lumben yand on i t is f loated farfnom its place. And i ts bunial cloth becomes a f lame off ire. But the self-mastened man or woman sets himselfon henself apart. He or she is like a tree gnown in fer-t i l e g round . l t gnows g reen and doub les i t s y ie ld o ffnuit . l t has i ts place in the eyes of i ts ownen. l ts fnuitis sweet, its shade is pleasant and its end is reachedin the garden.

59

V.Bet te r i s a bushe l wh ich God g ives you than f i ve

thousand wnongful ly gotten, such gains " l"y

not a dayin the stonehouse or bann and they ane oi no use inmaking beer', Their stay in the storehouse is no monethan a moment. when morning comes they have sunkfrom s ight . Bet ten to be poor- in the hands of Godthan niches in the stonehouse. Betten is bnead with ahappy heant than niches with much wonny.

vt.Rejoice not over niches gained by robbery non mounn

because of pover.ty. lf anchens in fnont advance toofar, then thein company abandons them. The boat ofthe covetous is abandoned in the mud, but the ship ofthe self-mastened man and woman sai ls with the wind.Pray then to God each day as the sun rises, saying,"Gnant me pnospenity and health." And God wil l giveyou al l you need in l i fe and you wil l be safe from fear.

vil.Keep youn tongue away from words of detnaction,

and you wil l be one loved by the people. You wil l f indyour seat in the Temple of God and your gif ts shal l beamong the offenings to youn Lond. You wil l be gneatlyhononed in old age, duly concealed in your coff in, andsafe from the wnath of God.

60

vll l ,Fon the unrestnained woman and man ane l ike a wolf-

cub in the fanm yand. They turn one eye against theothen. They cause bnothens and sistens to angue. Theygo before eveny wind l ike clouds. They dim the bnight-ness of the Sun. They bend their tai l l ike a baby cnoc-odi le, cur ' l ing up to inf l ict hanm. Thein l ips ane sweetbut their tongue is bit ter and a consuming f ire burnsin thein bel ly, Do not jump to join such a one, lest youbning misfortune upon yourself,

tx,Do not speak falsely to anyone, fon i t is an abomina-

t ion [o God . Do no t separa te you l " hean t fnom yountongue, and al l youn plans wil l be successful. You wil lhave weight in the presence of others and be secunein the hands o f God . God ha tes one who fa l s i f i eswords. And the gneat abomination of God is decep[ionand double-dealing.

X.Do not mislead a man or woman with pen and papy-

nus. l t is an abomination to God. Do not bean witnesswith false wonds non injune another with youn tongue.Do nob tax one who has nothing, nor make your penwnite falsely. l f you f ind a large debt against a poorpenson, divide i t into thnee pants, fongive two and letone stand, You wil l f ind this a path of l i fe. You wil lpass the night in sound sleep and in the monning, youwil l f ind i t again l ike good news. Betten is praise withthe love of others than wealth in the stonehouse. Bet-ten is bread when the mind is at peace than richeswith a troubled heant.

6 1

xl.Do no t con fuse a penson in the cour t o f raw non

mistneat the r ighteous. Do not give considenation tobhose in clean clothes and reject those who appear inr a g s . A c c e p t n o t t h e g i f t o f t h e s t n o n g m a n n o noppress the weak fon him. Justice is a gneat gift ofGod and God gives it to whom God wiils. sr.ely, thestrength of one who is rike God saves the wretchedfnom thein oppresson.

xll.Do not say: "Find me a stnong pnotecton, for one in

my c i t y has in ju red me. " And say no t "F ind me aredeemer, for one who hates me has done me harm. "Sunely, you know not the plans of God and cannot seetomonnow. Se t t l e down, then , i n the hands o f God .And your self-mastery in silence will overthrow them.For ancient and deep is the fean of the cnocodile whomakes no sound.

xll l.Bane not your soul to everybody non damage thereby

nespect for you. Spnead not youn wonds among othersnon associate younsel f wi th those who bane thei rhear t . Bet ter are those whose knowledge remainsins ide them, than those who ta l k to the i r d i sadvan-tage. One does not nun to neach penfection. And onedoes not cneate it in onden to destnoy it.

62

XIV.Laugh not at the bl ind, nor make fun of a dwarf ' nor

interfere with the plans of the lame. Do not hanassthose who are in the hands of God, nor be fience offace against them if they enn. Surely, humans are clayand s tnaw, and God i s the bu i lden . God teans downand bui lds up dai ly. God makes a thousand humble asHe wills. lt is God who makes thousands into overse-ens when they ane in thein houn of thein l i fe. Blessedare those who neach the West while they ane safe inthe hands of God,

XV.l f you see a person youn senior outside, walk behind

h im o r he r respec t fu l l y . G ive a lso a hand to e lde rsf i l led with been, And nespect them as thein chi ldnenw o u l d . T h e s t n o n g a n m i s n o t w e a k e n e d b y b e i n guncovened. And the back is not broken by bending it rnrespect. Better is a poor penson who speaks pleasantwonds than a nich penson whose wonds are as hanshand dry as straw. A pi lot who sees fan ahead wil l notwneck the ship on rocks.

XVI.Do not expose a widow if you catch her in the f ield,

Non fa i l t o be undens tand ing o f hen nep ly . Do no tnefuse your oil jan to a strangen to double it fon your'friends and family. God loves those who nespect thepoon mone than those who nevere the rich.

63

TheBook of Ankhsheshonqi

l .

senve God that He may protect you. senve you.bnothens and sisters that you may enjoy a good repu-taLion, senve a wise person that he or she may senveyou. senve one who senves you. senve any person soyou may benefit fnom it. And serve your- mother andfather that you may go fonwand and pnospen.

Examine every matter that you may undenstand it.Do no t say I am leanned bu t ra then se t younse l f tobecome wise. Be gentle and patient, then your- chanac-ten wil l be beauti ful. l t is in the deveropment of char-acter that instruction succeeds. Leann the stnuctuneand functioning of the sky. Learn the s[nucture andfunctioning of the earth.

The good fontune of a town is a leader who actsnighteously. The good fortune of a temple is i ts pniest.The good fontune of a f ield is the t ime i t is worked.The good fortune of a storehouse is the stocking of it.And the good fon tune o f the w ise i s the in exce i len tadvice.

l l .

May the "elden bnothen" of the town be the one towhom it is entnusted. May the kindest bnother of thefamily be the one who acts as "elden bnother' for i t ,May I have something and my nelat ives have somethingso that I may eat my own without holding back. Maythe f loodwaten neven fai l to come. May the f ield nevenfai l to f lounish. May chi ldnen do honon to thein fathen

and mother. May the moon follow the sun and not failto nise. May I necognize my fniends that I may sharemy goods with them. May I necognize my bnother andsister that I may open my heart to them. And may lifealways follow death.

Do not send a wise man in a small matter when animportant matten is waiting. Happy is the heart of himwho has made a judgment befone a wise man. A wisemaster who asks advice, his house stands foneven. Awise man seeks a friend, a fool seeks an enemy. Thechildren of a fool wander in the street, but those ofthe wise ane a lways wi th them. A wise man is onewho knows what goes on anound him.

l l l .

May the hear t o f a wi fe be the hear t o f her hus-band so tha t they may be f ree o f con ten t ion , l f awoman is at peace with hen man, they will neven farebadly. l f a woman whispers about her man, they wil lneven fare well. A good woman of noble chanacten isfood that eomes in t imes of hunger . A woman whoremains a woman at night is praised duning the day.He who violates a marnied woman on the bed will havehis wife violated on the gnound. A woman lets herselfbe loved according to the character of her man.

Do not send a fool in an important matter when youcan send one who is wise. Do not instruct a fool lesthe hate you fon it. When one isntnucts a fool, he orshe says "What they are doing insults me." The fniendo f a foo l i s a foo l . The fn iend o f a w ise person i sanothen wise person. lf you are given bread for beingstupid, you may learn to despise instruction. Althoughthe way of God is befone all people, the fool cannotfind it.

65

lv.Do not belittle the eldenly in youn heant. Honon the

eldenly in youn heart, and you wil l be hononed in theheants of al l . Do not laugh at youn son in front of hismother lest you leann the measune of his fathen. Donot prefer one of youn childnen to the othen, for youknow not which one of them will be kind to you.

There is no tooth that decays that s tays in i tsplace. Thene is no fr iend who walks alone. There is nowise one who comes to gr ie f . Thene is no fool whofinds profit. There is no one who deserts his tnavellingcompanion whom God does not hold accountable for i t .Thene is no one who deceives who is not deceived andno one who does wnong that goes on and tnuly pnos-pers.

V.Do not hunl a lance i f you cannot aim connectly. Do

not do evil to a person and thus cause anothen to doit to you. Let youn generosity neach one who needs it.Do not be stingy, fon wealth is no real security. Speaktruth to evenyone; let it cling to your speech. Do notd o t o a p e n s o n w h a t y o u d i s l i k e a n d t h u s c a u s eanother to do i t to you also, Thene is no good deedexcept the good deed that is done fon one who needsi t , Those who stnuggle together wi th the people ofthein town will nejoice in the victory with them.

66

TheBook of Phebhor

t.t f a beam is longer than i ts r ight measure, the

excess is cut off, lf the wind blows beyond its rightmeasune, i t wrecks the ships, Those who apply theright measure in all good things are not blamed. TheGod of just measure has cneated a balance in orden toesbablish right measune on eanth. He placed the heartdeep in the body fon [he night measure of its owner.Thus, if those who ane learned ane not balanced, theirlearning is of little use and a fool who knows not bal-ance does not escape misfortune. Pride and anroganceane the destnuction of their ownen. But those who aregentle in chanacten create bheir own fate.

i l .

The foolish child whom a father or mother has notinstnucted is l ike a statue of stone. l t is a son's anddaughter's advantage and good fortune to receiveinstruction and to ask for it. But no instruction cansucceed, if thene is nesentment for it. Youth who arenob cornupted by base desi res ane not b lamed andthose who contnol their sexual appetite, their namedoes not send fonth an unpleasant odon. Those whoane steadfast and thoughtful ane chosen among thepeople and those who listen to a correction protectthemselves from neceiving anothen. Surely, the fault ineveny kind of chanacten l ies in not l istening. The Godof wisdom has placed the stick on earth in orden boteach the fool by means of it. But He gave the wise a

67

sense of shame in orden to avoid al l punishment, Thus,a y o u t h w h o h a s n e s p e c t t h n o u g h s h a m e i s n o trejected with punishment.

l l l .

It is betten for a serpent to be in the house than afoo l who comes o f ten . Those who assoc ia te w i th afool ane dnawn into wnongdoing. Those who live with afool die in captivity. The fniends of fools sleep tied tothem. And Lhe wnongdo ing o f foo ls ha rm even the i rown nelatives. when a fool lights a fine he goes tooclose to i t and gets burnt. And when a fool starts a!sht ' she goes too close to i t and gets knocked down.Those who walk with the wise shane their- praise, butthose who walk by in the company of a fool cneate anevil odor in bhe street.

lv.Do no t be gneedy les t your name send fon th an

offensive odon. Gneed bnings confl ict and f ighting in ahouse. l t takes al l sense of shame, mency and trustf rom one 's hean t and i t causes tu rmo i l i n a fami l y .Those who ane greedy do not like to give to those whogave to them. They do not considen tomonrow, fonthey are only concerned with the moment, Thene is noend to the wnong done when money and greed anetogethen. Money is the trap God placed on eanth forthe ungodly so that they would wonny each day. ButHe gives it to those whom He favons in order to takeaway worny fnom thein hearts.

58

V.Those who g ive food genenously when they have

money ane the ones bo whom fate gives fontune. Fonweal th goes to those who g ive food to othens bymeans of i t . The heant of God is satisf ied when thepoon s tand pnov ided fon be fone H im. Thus , i f youacquine proper ty , g ive a pont ion to God by g iv ing apontion to the poon. l f you acquine pnopenty, spend i ton youl^ town so that there wil l be no turmoil in i t . l f i ti s i n youn powen, inv i te those fan away as we l l asthose nean you. Fon those who invibe those fnom afar,their name will be great when they go afan. Those wholove thein neighbors wil l f ind a family anound them. Godallows one to acquine wealth in netunn fon doing good.And those who give food to the poor, God takes themto Himself in mency wibhout measune,

vl.Gentleness in conduct of every kind causes the wise

to be pna ised . Do no t make youn mouth hansh o rspeak loudly with youn tongue. Fon a loud voice doesdamage to members of the body just l ike an i l lness.Do no t be so impa t ien t when you ask tha t you ge tangry while you ane l istening. The pnaise of the wise isgneat befone the people because they lisEen. Do notyield ofben to your tongue in onden to advise when youhave no t been asked . Those who hunry w i th the inmouth, give an incornect answen when they speak. Onedoes no t take se r ious ly the wonds o f the ta l ka t i vewhen cons ider ing an accusa t ion , And one does no tjudge the complaint of a fool based on how loud i t ispresented.

69

vll.l f the wise ane not carm, the i r manner is noL per-

fec t . l f no ca lm comes in ba t t l e , the anmy ge ts norest. lf thene is no calm between feasts, the mastenand mistress of the house cannot enjoy themselves.And i f there is no calm in a temple, God abandons i t .Thus, pnaise is given to the wise because of thein calmand old age is a good t ime in l i fe because of the calmthat comes with i t .

vll l .Do not take lightly a small thing lest you suffen fnom

it. Deadly hanm comes to the fool fon taking gneatnessl ightly in his heart. Likewise, hanm comes to a greatperson for taking smallness lightly. lt is God who givesthe wise the discerning heant in onden that they mayhave appropr ia te nespect . one who fears a l l hanmavoids al l harm. Do not take r ightry a small i l lness fonwhich there is a nemedy, take the nemedy.

A small snake has poison. A small r iver has i ts dan-gens. A small f i re should be feared. A small documenthas gneat benefi t . A small cond binds. A small truthdefends its ownen. A small rie causes tnouble for onewho tells it. A little food gives health to one who hasit, A little saving leads to wearth. The rittle heant sus-ta ins i ts ownen. A l i t t le good news make the hear thappy, A l i t t le dew gives l i fe to rhe f ields. A l i r t le windcar r ies bhe boa t a long . A l i t t l e bee b r ings honey . Asmall locust lays waste the grapevine. A smail wrongleads towands death. And a small good deed is not hid-den from God. Thus, many ane the small things thatdeserve nespect but few ane the gneat th ings thatmenit admination.

70

lx.The heart and tongue of the wise and the gneatness

of the place in which they rest, all come from God.When the people raise thein hands God knows it. Heknows the ungodly who imagines evil. He knows thegodly and that they have the greatness of God in theirheart. Before the tongue has been asked the question,God knows i ts answer. He d i rects the hear t andtongue by His command. lt is He who makes the waysafe without a guard. lt is He who gives a just rulingwithout having a hearing. He lets a person be great inh is o r he r l i f e t ime because o f H is mency . And Hemakes the poor beggar a master because He knowshis heant.

7 1

Books of Gontemplation

THE BOOKS OF CONTEMPLATION. These books conta tnthnee fonms of contemplation: lamentations, pnophetic asser-tions and meditations on death and etennal l i fe. These booksre f lec t a skept ic ism, sadness and contempla t ive pos tuneborn of the collapse and transformaEion of the social orderand the resu l tan t chaos and loss o f cu l tu ra l cen ter th isbnought. The Books of Khakheper-Ra-Soneb, and lpuwer rep-resent lamentations on Ehe low state to which the societyhad fallen. As Khakheper-Ra-Soneb says, "Maat, righteous-ness and order, has been cast out and isfet, evil and chaos,is in the Counci l Hal l , The way of God is v io lated and HisCommandants are bnushed aside, The land is in tunmoil andthere is mounning evenywhere."

lpuwer laments the revensa l o f the soc ia l o rder whenoutsiders have destroyed the intennal hanmony and stabil ityof ancient Egyptian society. "Behold now," he says, "how

greatly the people have changed," "The nobber has becomerich and the hononable penson a thief." The foreigners haveimposed new ways and created new relations and the right-eous "Egyptian of yesterday cannot be found anywhere."

In the Book of Dialog with the Soul a man expresses despairat the changed social cincumstances and contemplates death.This is the eanliest known literary example of a soul in turmoilconfronting unjust suffening and raising the question of whyand what is to be done. lt predates the Hebnew Book of Jobapproximately fifteen hundned yeans which represenbs a similarconcenn and question and to which it has been compared. The

75

Book of songs focuses meditation on the inevitability of deathand the need to enjoy life now fon Ehe most part and suggestsa postune that is expnessed later in the Hebr-ew Book ofEcclesiastes. The last song, however, focuses on praise oflearning and the learned and argues it rs learned achievementwhich causes one's name to last foreven.

Finally, the Book of Nefenti offens pr"ophecy of the comingof a r-ighteous savior-king, a messiah to neestablish maat anJcast out isfet . This is the oldest and cleanest messianic pno_jection and antedates the Hebr.ew rnodel of David by morethan a thousand yeans. At least one tnaditional egyptorogisthas argued tha t such mess ian ism was ev ident in lpuwer ,which is at least f ive hundred yeans earlier, but the passagehe quotes to support it seems more an appeat to God thanthe pharoah. However, there are othen passages in rpuwerthat suggest such a messianic hope and proyect ion. Also,a no te o f in te res t in th is p rophecy is the pred ic t ion o f amessiah king born of a mothen from Nubia, which was thesource of nepeated Egyptian nenaissances after periods ofdegenenation and despair.

76

TheBook of Khakheper-Ba-Soneb

l .

Would tha t I knew what o thers ane ignonan t o f ,something that had not alneady been said, that I mightspeak and have my hear t answen me. That I mightexplain to it my distness and shift to it the bunden onmy back and speak of that which aff l icts me. That Imight tel l i t what I suffer and breathe a sigh of rel iefafterwand.

I med i ta te on wha t has happened , on the th ingswhich have come to pass thnoughout the land. Changesare taking place and i t is not l ike last year, One yeanis mone troublesome than the next. The land is in tun-moil , and being destroyed. Maat, r ighteousness andorden, has been cast out and lsfet, evil and chaos, isin the Counci l Hal l . The way of God is violated and Hiscommandments ane brushed aside. The land is in tun-moil and thene is mounning evenywhene,

i l .

Eveny day that dawns bnings events fnom which theface is forced to turn. I speak out strongly against it.My limbs are heavy laden and my heart is heavy withgnief, l t is painful not to speak about i t . Anothen heantmight bend on break, but a strong heant in the midstof dif f icult ies is an al ly to i ts ownen.

Then Khakhepen-Ra-Soneb said to his heant: Comemy heant , that I might speak to you and you mightrespond to what I have said, lnterpret for me what ishappening in the land, why those who wene once sobnilliant are now brought low. I meditate on what has

come to pass. Misery hasnot end tomonrow.

come today and turmoil wifl

l l l .

Everyone is s i lent about The whole fand is ingreat tnouble. And none ane wise enough to know it;none are angry enough to speak out and eveny day onewakes to su f fe r ing . Thus , my su f fe r ing i s l ong andheavy. The weak and wretched lack the stnength tosave themselves from that which overwhelms them. ltis painful to keep silent about what one heans and yetit is of no use to answer the ignorant.

People only love their own words. Evenyone builds oncnookedness and night-speaking is abandoned. I havespoken to you my heart; now answer me. A heant thatis approached must not keep silent, fon surely the ser-vant and the masten share the same fate. And thus,many are the things that must weigh heavy on you,also.

TheBook of lpuwer

l .

Lo, what the ancestors foretold has come bo pass.The land is full of bands of evil-doers and the prowmangoes to plow with his shield. Faces are pale; the bow-men stand ready; wrongdoing is evenywhere and theneis no man or woman of yesterday. Lo, the women are

bannen and none conceive, for God does not make chil-dren anymone because of the state of the land. There isblood everr/rruhere and no shortage of the dead. lndeedthe bunial cloth cnies out befone one appnoaches it.

Lo, the land tunns l ike a potter 's wheel. The robberhas become rich and the honorable penson a thief, Thefoneigners fnom without have come to Egypt and theEgyptian of yesterday cannot be found anywhene. Lo,the great and small say "l wrsh I were dead" and littlechi ldren say "He should not have caused me to l ive."Lo, the unrestnained says: "lf I knew whene God is, Iwould senve Him. "

l l .

Behold now, how greatly the people have changed.One who once did not sleep even on a box now owns abed. Those who once owned nobes now ane in ragsand those who once did not weave fon themselves nowown f ine l inen. Behold, those who once did not bui ldboats, now own ships and the fonmen ownens just looka t them, fo r they ane no longen the ins , Those whoonce lacked shelten now have homes and those whohad homes ane in the blast of bhe stonm. And thosewho knew nothing of God now make offenings to Himwith the incense of others.

Lo, why does God seek to create men and women,when the gentle are not distinguished from the violent?But He bnings coolness in the midst of heat . And a l lsay: "He is the shepherd of all humankind and thene isno evi l in His heart. Though His f locks ane few, Hespends the whole day tending them. But there is fine intheir heants. Oh, that He had penceived bheir nature inthe first genenation. Then He would have destnoyed the

wicked, stretched out His arm against them. surely, Hewould have destroyed their seed and their legacy,

TheBook of Dialog Wirh the Soul

l .

I spoke to my soulTo whom shall I speakevil and fniends todaygneat with greed andbon's goods, Kindnessimposed on everyone.

To whom shall I speak today? people willingly acceptevil and goodness is cast to the gnound evenywhere.Those who should enrage people by their wrongdoingmake them laugh at thein evl l deeds. people piunoerand everyone seizes his or her neighbor's goods.

l l .

To whom shall I speakis an int imate fniend andused to deal is an enemy,and none netunn the goodand sisters are evil and

that I might answen what i t said:today? Bnothers and sisters aneane not worth loving. Hearts aneeveryone seizes his on her neigh-has passed away and violence is

today? The one doing wnongthe bnother with whom oneNo one nemembens the pastdeed that is done. Bnothers

people turn to stnangers forrighteousness or affection.

To whom shall I speak today? Faces are empty andall tunn their faces fnom thein brothers and sisters.

80

Heants ane great with gneed and thene is no heart ofa man on woman upon which one might lean. None anejust on r ighteous and the land is left to the doers ofevil.

To whom shall I speak today? Thene ane no intimatefniends and the people turn to strangers to tel l theintroubles. None ane content and those with whom oneused to walk no longen exist. I am burdened with gniefand have no one to comfont me. Thene is no end tothe wnong which noams the eanth.

| | l . Thus,

Death , to me, today i s l i ke hea l th to the i l l , l i kegoing outdoors after confinement. Death, to me, todayis l ike the smell of myrnh, l ike sit t ing unden the sai l ona windy day. Death, to me, today, is l ike the fnagnanceof lotus, like sitting on the shone of feasting.

Death, to me, today is l ike a well- trodden way, l ikenetunning home from wan. Death, to me, today, is l ikethe cleaning up of clouds fnom the sky, l ike a pensondiscovening that which was unknown, Death, to me,today, is l ike longing to see home aften spending manyyeans in captivity.

tv.Sunely, one who neaches the beyond wil l be a l iving

god, punishing the offenses of the wrongdoen. Sunely,one who reaches the beyond wil l be one who stands inthe Sun Bark o f Ra , caus ing abundan t g i f t s to beg iven to the temp les . Sure ly , one who neaches thebeyond w i l l be cons idened w ise and w i l l no t be p re -vented fnom appealing to Ra when he on she speaks.

8 1

And my soul said to me. cast youn complaints aside,my comnade and bnothen. Make offenings on the sacni-f i c i a l f i n e a n d c l i n g t o l i f e a s l h a v e s a i d . L o v e m e ,yaur soul , hene. Set as ide thoughts of death anddesine death only when youn body joins the eanth, ThenI will alight on you afren you have become tnuly weanyand we shal l dwell togethen foneven.

TheBook of Songs

I

L Song of Phanoah Antef, the vindicated:

Pnospenous is this good pnince. For his kind destinyhas come to pass. One genenation passes and anothenremains since the Lime of the ancestons. The exaltedones who l ived in formen t imes now nest in their pyra-mids . And the b lessed nob les ane l i kew ise bun ied inthein pynamids also. Yet those who bui l t those pyr.a-mids, thein places ane no mone. Behold what has beendone to them.

I have heand the wonds of lmhotep and Handedef,two sages of old, whose teaching ane nepeated often.Yet whene ane thein places now. Their walls al l havewasted away and thein places ane gone as though theyhad neven ex is ted. There is none who netunns fnomthene that he on she may te l l us how they fane, onwhat they need so that oun hearts may be at peaceunti l we too neach the place whene they have gone.

Let your heant be happy then, and fonget your dayof departure. Follow the desine of youn heart fon long

82

as you live, Put myrrh on your head and clad yourself

i n f i ne c lo thes , En joy the wondnous th ings f i t f on agod. lncnease the number of the things you enjoy andlet not your heant become lax on lose i ts vigon, Fol lowEhe desires of your heart and do that which is good

fon you. Fulf i l l youn needs on eanth acconding to thecommands of youn heart til the day of mounning comesfon you. For the God of the depanted heans nob themounning, and wailing saves no one fnom the grave'Celebrate, then, the days of nejoicing and do not t ineof them, Fon lo, none may take their- goods with themand none who depant even come back again,

l l . Song fon the Pniest of Ra, Nefenhotep ( l ) :

Generations pass away since the first day of crea-tion and othen generations come in their places. Thesplendon of Ra r ises in the monning and goes to nestin the west. Men beget and women conceive and evenynostr i l bneathes ain. Day dawns and the new bonn goto their appointed places, Celebrate the days of nejoic-ing, then, o' pniest. Put the f inest scents to yout ' noseand ganlands of lotus flowens anound your neck andshouldens and on the body of your beloved sister" whosits beside you, Set song and music before you and allev i l t h ings beh ind . Rememben on ly joy un t i l t he daycomes when you reach the port in the land that lovessi lence, And give bread to those who have no f ield, fonso shall you gain a good name fon the futune forever.

l l l . A lso, for the Pniest Nefenhotep ( l l ) :

I have heand those songs wh ich ane in tombs o fancient t imes. And of what they say when they pnaise

l i fe on eanth and bel i t t le the city of rhe depanred. whyis this done to the land of etennity, bhe just and night,where no feans ane found? Thene quanner ing i s anabomination and no one places him on henself against afe l l ow. Fon th i s i s a land wh ich has no opponenrs .Thene i s none who w i l l f a i l t o neach bh is p lace . Thedunation of what is done on earth passes l ike a dneam.But to those who neach panadise in the west, is said,"Welcome, safe and sound."

lV. Song in Pnaise of rhe Leanned

As fon those leanned scnibes of the t ime that cameaf ten the powens o f heaven and who fone to ld thefu tune , the in names have become evenrasb ing eventhough they have depanted having completed the dayso f the i r ' l i ves . And a l l t he in nera t i ves ane fo r -go t ten ,They made not fon themselves pynamids of metal withs te lae o f meta l f rom heaven . They d id no t know toleave heins, chi ldnen that might r-epeat their names,Instead they made heins out of the books of instnuc-t ion which they composed.

They took fon themselves the scnoll as teacher--priestand bhe wniting board as a loving son. Books of instnuc-tions are thein pynamids, the need pen their- chird andthe stone sunface on which they wrote, thein wife. Thegneat and small became thein childnen. For- the scr-ibebecame thein leaden. Man decays; his conpse becomesdust and all his nelatives die, But a book causes him tobe remembened thnough the mouth of those who quoteit, Betten is a book than a well-builb house, than a tombin the West, lndeed a book is betten than a gneat housewith a solid foundation on a stela in the temple,

ls thene any one l ike the sage Handedef, on anothen

B4

l ike lmhotep? None stands among oul' nelatives who islike Neferti or Kheti, the foremost of them. I submitto you the name of Ptah-em-Djehuti and of Khakheper-Ra Soneb, ls there another like Ptah-hotep on one whois equal to Ka-iris? That which came fnom the mouthsof these learned men who foretold Lhe future came topass. And it is found as a clear statement wnitten inthei r books. Though they may have concealed theinwonds of powen fnom evenyone else, they can be foundin thein books of instnuction. Death might have causedtheir names to be forgotten, but it is thein wnitingsthat causes them to be remembened.

TheBook of Neferti

l .

And His Majesty Phanoah Snefru said: "Come Nef-erti, my fniend and speak to me some beautiful wordsand well-chosen phrases which might please me uponheaning them. And the teachen-priest, Nefenti , de-ploned what had come to pass in Egypt, speaking onthe condit ion of the East where Asiat ic peoples noamin strength, fr ightening those about to hanvest theincrops and seizing catt le even at the plough. He said:

Be moved my heart and mounn for this land in whichyou wene born, For there is si lence befone evi l ; whatshould be condemned is feared and the great ane oven-thnown in the land of your birth. Tine not then whilethis evi l exists. Rise up against that which is befoneyou. Fon lo, the gneat no longen nule the land and what

85

was established has now been undone. May Ra beginto re-establish this land for it is ruined and nothingof va lue nemains. Not even the b lack of a nai l hasescaped this fate. Lo, the land is destnoyed and theneane none to cane fon it. Thene are none who speak andnone who weep. How then fares this land?

l l .

I shall speak of what is befone me. I will neven fonetellthat which will not come, A strange bind will bneed rnthe Delta marsh and make its nest beside the people ofEgypt. For the people will let it appnoach thnough lack ofaction. And aftenwards, all good things will pass away.

Beasts of the desent will dnink at the niven of Egyptand take thein ease on the shones fon they will haveno one to fean . The land i s i n tunmo i l and no oneknows what will come to pass, fon what the futune willbning is hidden. And as i t is said: when sight and hean-ing fail the many, those who cannot speak will lead.

i l t .I show you a land to rn up by tunmo i l . Tha t wh ich

should nob be has come to pass. people will take upweapons o f wan and the land w i l l l i ve in con fus ion ,People will spill blood for bnead and laugh out loud atpain and miseny. And none will weep over death. Every-one's heant shal l cane only for him on herself . A per-son wil l si t with hisihen back tunned while one murdensanothen. I show you the son and daughter as enemy,the bnothen and s is ter as foe and the chi ld s lay ingmother and fathen. I show you the undenmost turnedto the uppermost.

lv.But a king shal l come from the south named Ameni,

the vindicated one, the son of a woman of Nubia. Hewil l join together the Double Cnown and the land wil lbe enclosed in his gnasp. The people of his neign willnejoice, for Ameni, the son of man, wil l make his namefor all eternity. The evil-minded plottens of treason willhold back their speech thnough fear of him. The Asi-atic invaders will fall before his funy and the Libyaninvaders wil l be consumed by his f lame. Rebels wil lyield before his wrath and tnaitors will be brought lowby his might. Then, Maat, righteousness and orden, willretunn to its place and lsfet, evil and chaos, will bedriven away.

87

TheBook of Declanations

of Uirtues

THE BOOK OF DECLARATIONS OF VIFTUES. As statedearlier, the heart of ancient Egyptian ethics and spiritualstriving is maat. Ancient Egyptian ethics and spirituality, l ikeall African ethics and spinituality, have and stress a practicaldimension. Righteousness is real only in personal and socialpractice, Maat, Ehen, is a social as well as spiritual task forwh ich the reward is an en joyab le and beaut i fu l r i fe in thecommunity on earth and a spiritual l i fe in the heavens as aliving god. [see below in the Books of Bising Like Ra). In aword, maat is both a pensonal and social Eask and the prom-ise and reward for completing it.

The ancient Egyptians, thus, developed an ideal charactentype rooEed in and neflective of maat which the Instructionsurge and the Declarations of Vintues state as both an accom-plished fact and a model to emulate. This ideal type was thegerLt, the self-mastened, i,e,, calm, silent, controlled, modest,wise, gentle and socially active; and the geru maaf, who wastruly the self-mastened. The first was the serf-mastered. thesecond a kind of master of the self-mastered. The opposite ofthe self-mastered is the unnestrained person - hot-mouthed,hot-Eempered, aggressive, and generally infused with isfet, theopposite of maat.

what one sees, then, in the Declarations of Virtues is thepnact ice o f bas ic va lues on the persona l and soc ia l leve lwhich pose an ideal type and serve as a model of maat forothers to emulate, lt is important to note that the personalis inseparable fnom the social , that r ighteousness andnestnaint are always, as in other African ethics and spinit-

g 1

uality, achieved, tested and tempered in nelations with oth-ers . Maat beg ins w i th fami ly ne laE ions tha t makes onepraised by his ther) father, loved by his (her) mother, andcherished by his (herl bnothers and sisters. Maat expnessesi tsel f in a c lassic statement of Egypt ian moral i ty whichappears thousands of years laten in Hebrew-Chnistian sacredbexts : " l gave food to the hungry , c lo thes to the naked,water to the thirsty and a boat to those without one." Thelast part of this declaration of vintue, of course, reflectsaga in the anc ien t Egypt ian sea- f an ing env i ronment andreveals the essentiality of having a means of transportationon water.

These Declarations which were usually found on stelae, akind of memorial plaque, fonm a parallel and complement tothe Declarations of lnnocence which appear in the Book ofComing Forth by Day (see belowl and thus, expness a con-sistent ethic of right thought and practice whose reward isfound in this l i fe and the next.

TheBook of Declarations of Virtues

l . Harwa, ch ie f o f f i c ia l o f the H igh Pn ies tess o fAmen-Ra says:

I am a noble for whom one should act, one of f inmheart to the end of l i fe. I am one beloved of his city,pna ised by h is d i s tn i c t , k ind -hean ted to h is towns . Ihave done what the people love and God pra ises. Iwas one tnuly venenated and had no fault , who gavebnead to the hungny and clothes to the naked, I put anend to pain and enased wnongdoing, I bunied the bles-sed, supported the aged and satisf ied the needs ofthe have-nots. I was a shelten fon the chi ld and helpto the widow; one who gave nank even to an infant.I d id these th ings knowing the i r va lue and knowingthein newand fnom the Lond of Maat , in a word, toendune in the mouth of the people without end, to bewell-remembered fon yeans and yeans to come,

I tl l . D jedkhonsefankh, pnophet of Amen-Ra, says:

Hai l to you who wi l l come af ter me, who shal l l ive int imes to come. I shal l make you cal l me blessed, fonmy destiny was gneat. Ra, as Khnum the Gneat Pot-ter, fashioned me into one most able, an advisol ' ofexcel lent counsel. He made my chanacten supeniot ' toothens and guided my tongue to that which was excel-lent. I kept my mouth fnee fr^om attacking those whoattacked me. My patience turned my foes into fniendsand my enemies into allies. I conbnolled my mouth andwas ski l led in nesponse, yet I did not submib to evi ldo ing.

The people judged me as one genenous, Fon I hatedthe hoanding of r iches, I caused them al l to gneet mefon my excel lence, paying homage to my innen essence

93

and saying of me "he is a righteous offspring of hisfathen and a divine descendent of his mother. No onespoke evil of my panents because of me. My panentsw e n e h o n o n e d g r e a t l y b e c a u s e o f m y w o n t h i n e s s ,Indeed, they found me helpful while they l ived upon theeanth, And I pnovide offenings fon them now that theyhave depanted. Moreover, I did not allow my senvantsto addness me as "our mas ten" , bu t i ns tead mademyself in the image of their fathen.

l l l . Paheni , scnibe of the noyar tneasuny and mayon oftwo towns, says:

I am a noble who served his Lord, one skilled andfnee of negl igence. I walked the noad I had explored. Iwas gu ided by my own hear t on the road o f thosepraised by the pharoah. My good chanacten naised mehigh. I was summoned as one in whom no faulb wasfound, l f I wene placed on the scales, I would comeout complete, blameless and without a blemish. I cameand went with a f irm heart, tel l ing no l ies to anyone. Iknow the God that dwells in man and woman. KnowingHim I knew this fnom that and perfonmed the tasks asthey were commanded. I neven confused the messagewith the messengen. I did not speak vurgan wonds ontalk with wonthless people. Indeed, I was the model ofk indness.

lV. Harkuf, governon of Uppen Egypt and teacher-pniest, says:

The phar"oah pnaised me and my fathen made for mea wil l , fon I was one wonthy. One beloved of his fathen,pna ised by h is mothen and one whom a l l h i s s i s te rsand bnothens loved. I gave bnead to the hungny, cloth-ing to the naked and brought the boatless to dry land.

I was one who spoke just ly , who nepeated t ,hatw h i c h w a s p l e a s i n g t o h e a r . I n e v e n s p o k e e v i l l yagainst anyone bo his on her supenior, Fon I wished tostand well with the Most High God. Never- did I judgeb e t w e e n t w o c o n t e n d e r s i n s u c h a w a y t h a t i tdepnived a chi ld of his on her parents' legacy.

V. Nefer-seshem-Ra, says:

I have spoken tnuly and done night. I spoke just lyand nepeated that which was just, I seized the nightmoment so as to stand well with the people. I judgedbetween two in such a way that would satisfy botho f them. I nescued the weak fnom those who wenestnongen as much as was in my powen. I gave breadto the hungry, clothes to the naked and bnought theboatless to dry land. I bunied those who had no chil-dnen and bui l t a boat for those wene without one. Irespected my fathen, pleased my mothen and naisedmy sistens and brothens.

Vl . Wennofen, pnophet of Osin is , says:

May God g ive me incense fo r the c i t y o f e tenn i t yand waten for the gnaveyand of the West. Fon I am aman fon whom one should act. I was true-heanted, justand tnus twor thy . One who wa lked on the wa ten o fGod. I was one praised in his town, generous in hisdistnict and kind and compassionate to evenyone. I wasfr iendly and one welcomed by othens, widely loved andcheenful. I was self-mastened in t imes of sbness andmisfontune, beauti ful of speech and well-spoken. I wasa stnong shelter fon the needy, one on whom al l couldlean. I welcomed the stnanger and was a helpful ad-viser and an effect ive guide, I was one who pnotected

95

the weak fnom the strong and was a boat to cnosswaten for everyone.

I was a worthy noble who did God's wish and onekind and compassionate to his fniends. I was genenousto the have-nots. My heart did not say "give me" toanyone, I was one who loved just ice and hated wnong-doing. And I always did what was good.

Vl l . Nebnefer .u, pnophet of Amen Ra, says:

I live on earth as . one who gave guidance in workto the unawane, who instnucted the cnaftsman by therufe. Who knew what to say when speaking in the pal-ace, who enased wnong in eveny situation, who pleasedGod with cleansing. I spoke to the people in a mannerthey l iked and judged evenyone acconding to thein chan-acben, giving attention to what they wished.

Vl l l . Ankhr i f i , gnear ruter of fhe d ismicrs of Edfuand Hienaconpolis, says:

I am the vanguand and neanguand of the people. Onewho f inds the solut ion whene i t is lacking, A leader- ofthe land thnough active assention. I choose and usewonds well and am col lected in thought on the day ofthe joining of three southenn most distnicts. Fon I ama champion without peen who spoke out when the peo-ple were silenb, on the day of fean when Upper Egyptwas si lent. Those on whom I placed my hand, nevenmet misfortune, for. my heant was committed and mycounsel excel lent.

lX. Beka, stewand of the public gnanany, says:

I was just and tnue and one without malice. Fon Iplaced God in my heant and was quick in discerning

His will. I have reached the city of those who dwell in

etennity. I have done good on earth. I have not injured

othens. I have neither been evil nor approved of any-

th ing ev i l on o f fens ive . I have de l igh ted in speak ing

tnuth. For I knew wel l the neward that comes f rom

doing this on earth from the Eime of one's first act

t i l the t ime one reaches the grave. lndeed my sure

defense shall be in speaking truth on the day when I

reach the divine judges, the ski l l ful interpneters, dis-

coverens of all actions and chastisens of all offenses.

I took pleasure in righteousness, staying in hanmony

with the laws of the Hall of Maat. I have not oppnes-

sed the lowly nor done harm to those who honon God.

I have spent my life in the way of righteousness. The

sincenity and goodness which wene in the heart of myfathen and mother I re turned through my love forthem. And I never ac ted in any manner to d i shonorthem, even fnom the earliest days of my youth. Thoughof great status I have acted as one whose position

was low. And I have not undermined anyone worthierthan myself.

X. Antef, High Stewand of the office of the Govenn-ment, says:

I am si lent befone the angny, patient with the igno-nan t i n o rden to que l l con f l i c t , l am coo l , f ree f romhasty acts, anticipating the outcome, expecting whatoccuns. I am one who counsels in situations of str i fe,a person who knows which words incite anger. I amfr" iendly, when cal led upon, to those who would tel l metheir concern. I am contnol led, kind, fr iendly, one whocomforts the weeper with good words. I am genenousto those who count on me and one who does good tohis peens. I am one who is iust , in the house of h isLond, who recognizes f latteny when i t is spoken. I ampleasant, openhanded, a possessor of food who doesnot hide his face from those in need. I am a friend of

97

the poor and favonable to those who have not. I amone who feeds the hungry who are needy and one whois openhanded to those who are destrtute.

I am one who is informed to those who lack knowl-edge and one who teaches a person what is useful tohim or her. I am upright in the house of the phanoah,one who knows that which should be said in everyoffice. I am a listener, one who listens to Maat andwho ponders it in the heart. I am a peacemaker in thehouse of his Lond, one who is remembered by reasonof his excel lent qual i t ies. I am kind in the courts, onewho is calm, and not offensive,

I am a good man, not acting hastily, one who does notattack a person for a single remank. I am accunate likethe scale, impartial and true like the Lord of Just Mea-sure. I am a man f irm of foot whose plans ane wellthought out who is loyal to those who have caused himto prospen. I am a knower who taught himself knowl-edge, an advisor whose advice is sought. I am one whospeaks in the hall of justice, one who is skilled tn speechin difficult situations.

Moreover, he says:

I set goodness under my house and love for mewent thnoughout the land. I gave bnead to the hungry,waten to the thirsty and helped the shipwrecked onthe in way . I bu r ied the aged , I c lo thed the naked . Icommitted no sin against man on woman and none thatGod hates. I appl ied the Law which the phanoah loved.I have come to my city and entered my home. I havedone that which both man and woman love and thingsthat are approved of by God.

n/ \Hw

FIil

ltU

g8

Books of Rising Like Ba

THE BOOKS OF HISING LIKE RA. These books are singu-larly and together the oldest written record of the dawn ofstrucEured moral consciousness, They nepresenb Afnicansleading the human rupture with the animal world and estab-lishing not only an ethical slandard of social behavior butposing the possibility of resurrection, ascension and trans-formation into a l iving god. ln this section, I have given thesebooks titles diffenent than those most tnaditional egyptolo-gists have assigned them. The oldcst texts which ane fromthe Old Kingdom and are called by them the Pyramid Texts,I have t i t led the Book o f R is ing and Trans format ion . Therationale for this is the focus and activity expressed in thetext where the royal vindicated one, i,e., the pharoah in thiscase, r i ses f rom the dead, ascends in the heavens andffansforms into a living god. Rising here refers both to res-unnection and ascension in the heavens. And transfonmationis achieved through having lived righteously, becoming onewi th God and then becoming a l i v ing god onese l f , i .e . , apower in the heavens.

The texts from the Middle Kingdom are called the CoffinTexts by the tnaditional egypEologists. These I have titled"The Book of Vindication" which, as the first l ine in the bookshows, is what at least one part of ib, if not the total text,was ca l led . F ina l l y , I have ne iec ted the t i t le , Book o f theDead, and used also the title the ancient Egyptians assignedthe book, i.e., The Book of Coming Forth By Day,

Al though Ehe Book of Ris ing and Tnansformat ion was

10, ,

appanently f irst used mainly for pharoahs, it was, in my esti-mat ion, a moder fon human possibir i ty represented by theperson who more than anyone else symbolized the possibilityof divinity. Moneover, this book and the others in this sec-tion wene eventuaily appnopriated by the masses and becamethe basic texts for "nising l ike Ra", Thus, I used .,royal

vindi-cated one", or "vindicated one" rather uhan the ,,N,,

or nameof. a parti!l'|". pharoah as is the practice of haditionar egyp-tologists' For it is not just the phanoah who nose and trans-formed, but any and all vindicated ones.

I have put the books in an orden that is reversed chrono-logically, but which logically f it acconding to the activity eachcontains. Finst a person comes forth (nesurrecLs), declareshis (her) innocence in the Hail of Judgment, is vindicated,and then rises and transforms into a riving god. ArEhoughthere is some of each in all, each book tendl 1o have moreof the activity by which it is named.

In the Book of coming Forth By Day, r have used the tide,Declarations of Innocence, fon the thirty-six and forty-twodeclarations made by a person in tne n"it of Righteousne"sto establish his ther) blamelessness. Although some tnadi-bional egyptologists call this statement, "the Negative con-fession", others have used "the Declarations of Innocence,,also. The Declaration is obviously not a confession eithen inconten t o r con tex t . l t i s no t an admiss ion o f fau l ts , bu trather a denial of them. And the Hall of Righteousness isnot a place where one confesses faults, buL rather whereone declares oneself innocent so that he or she may be vin-dicated and rise l ike Ra.

one of the majon significances of these "Books of RisingLike Ra" is Ehein emphasis on the ancient Egyptian belief inthe concept of the possibil i ty of immontality and divinity fonhumans. ln a word, they posit that through right uhoughtand pnactice, one could become a god and liu" foreven atthe right hand of Ba. This could be achieved as these booksand oEhers of rhe Husia state and suggest, in thnee basicways: 1) achieved intennal devetopment; 2) excef lence insocial nelations; and 3) significant socio-historical senvice andachievement,

1 A ?

Finally, it is important to note that in the Declarations of

lnnocence, as has been poinbed out often, we find a source

of the Ten Commandments and in the Books of Rising Like

Fla we find again the histonical source of so many othen con-

cepLs central to Hebrew and Chnistian theology, i.e', resur-

rection, the Risen Savior, the Beloved Son, the Day and Hall

of Judgment, immontality of the soul, etc. lt is this and the

other conEributions cited above as well as those unmentioned

in this volume which form the rich and ancient moral and

spiritual legacy Africa, through its daughter, ancient Egypt,

has given the world,

1 0 3

TheBook of Goming Forth By Day

Hene begins the Book of Coming Fonth by Day, ofsongs of pnaising and glori fying, of coming fonth andentening God's Blessed Domain in the beauti ful West,T h e s e a r e t o b e r e c i t e d o n t h e d a y o f b u r i a l , o fentering in after coming fonth.

LO you who bn ing b lame less sou ls in the House o f

Osiris the Risen Savior, bring this excellent soul withyou. Let him heil hean as you hean and see as yousee. Let him heil stand up even as you stand up andsit down as you sit down. O you who give bread andbeen to blameless souls in the House of Osir is, givebread and beer day and night to this soul whose wordis true befone God, Lord of the sacred city of Abydos,and before you.

O you who open bhe way and c lear bhe paths forblameless souls in the House of Osinis, open the wayand c lear the paths for the soul o f th is one whosevo ice i s v ind ica ted by you . May he bhe l en te r theHouse of Osinis in boldness and ceme fonth in peace.May he bhd not be opposed on sent back, May hefshd enter pra ised and come fonth loved and t r ium-phant. May his (herl commands be canried out in theHouse of Osiris. May his heil wonds travel wiEh you.And may he fshel not be found deficient in the Balanceand be free fnom all faults.

l l .

May I not be judgedmultitude. May my souland be found to have

according to the mouth of thelift itself up before my heant,

been nighLeous on earth, May

1 0 5

I come in to your pnesence O ' Lond o f Londs , may Ineach the Hall of Fl ighteousness. May I nise l ike a l iv-ing god and give fonth light like the divine powers thatane in heaven.

Let me proceed in peace to the Wes[ , May thelonds o f the sacned Land nece ive me and g ive methnee-fold praise in peace. May they make a seat forme besides the Eldens of the counci l , May I ascend inthe pnesence of the Beneficent one. And may I as-sume whatever fonm I want in whateven p lace myspir i t wishes to be.

l l f .

O My heart, my mothen, my heant, my mothen, myheant wheneby I come into being. stand not up againstme as a wi tness nor oppose me in the counci l o fJudgment . we igh nob heavy aga ins t me be fone theKeepen o f the Ba lance . you ane my d iv ine essencewhich dwells in my body, the divine powen which makesstnong my limbs. when you come forth in the place ofhappiness where we go, may you not cause my nameto send fonth an of fensive odon befone those whoassign people to their rightful place.

May it be favorable fon us and the Hearer be favo'-able to us and thene be joy at the weighing of wonds.Let not falsehood be uttened against he befone theGneat God. Fon sunely youn r-igl'rteousness will causeyou to rise up in triumph.

tv.Behold, I am in youl- presence '0 Lor.d of Heaven.

Thene is no evil in my body, I have not knowingly spo-

1 0 6

ken that which is not true, nor have I done anythingwi th a fa lse hear t . Gnanf that I may be l ike thosefavoned ones who are in youn fol lowing and that I maybe an Osiris - one vindicated and risen - and greatlyfavoned by the Beneficenb God

V.I come forth tniumphantly against my enemies. I spl i t

the heavens and open up the horizon. I travel acnossthe ean th on the hee ls o f my enemies . I cause theGlon ious and Gnea t Ones to come to me, fo r I amequipped wi th wonds of powen. I eat wi th my ownmouth and chew with my own jaw. Fon I wonship Godin heaven and I am given that which endures in themidst of things which ane overthnown.

S tand back f rom my pa th , fo r I am one w i th Ra ,coming fonth across the honizon against His enemy,who shal l not be nescued from me, I have stneLchedout my hand as Lord of the Cnown of Upper Egypt. Il i f bed up my legs as one who hur r ies the dawn. Myenemy shall not escape me, Indeed he shall fall befoneme. He has been given to me and shall not be rescued.

vt.I stand up as Horus, betoved son and avenger of his

father. I sit down as Ptah, God who taid the founda-tions of the universe, I have gnown stnong as ThoLh,wisdom exalted. I have become as powenful as Atum- Ra as the Perfecter. I walk with my own feeb, Ispeak with my own mouth. I punsue my enemy. He isg iven to me and he sha l l no t be nescued fnom he , Ihave entened as a falcon and come fonth as a phoenix,

107

Morning star make way for me, so that I may adoreRa in the beautiful paradise of the West.

vll.My name does not pass away. I am the soul that

created the deep, that makes its seat in God's do-main. My nest, my place of birth, is hidden and my egghas not been broken. I am Lord of the heights ano Ihave made my nest in the sky. But I come down toearth bhau I may do away with my uncleanliness.

O Lord Osi r is , comemake me strong. Gnantever last ingness as youfather Ra, whose bodyone who indeed does

then and establ ish me andthat I may enter the land ofhave done a long w i th your

never passed away and who isno t d ie . I have no t done tha t

wh ich you ha te , bu t have pna ised youn name amongthose who love youn Divine Essence. May your spiritlove me and not neject me. And may you not let mybody decay, but deliven me as you did deliven younself.Let life rise out of death. Let not decay make an endof me or my enemies come against me in thein manyfonms.

vllf .I am the Great One, the son of a Great One. I am

the Fieny one, the son of the Fiery one, whose headwas nestoned to h im af ter i t had been cut of f . Thehead of osir is, the Risen savion, is not taken fnom hit m

from me, I have risenI have made myself

young again. I am one

and my head shall not be takenup and knitted myself together.whole. I nenew myself and gnowwith Osiris, Lord of Etennity.

1 0 8

He who shall accompany me who am about to f allwi l l l i f t me up when I have descended in the val ley ofAbydos and gone to nest . For sunely I am one whoworships Him, I have assumed divine authority in thecity where I found Him, I conquened and carr ied awaythe dankness by my strength. I have taken possessionof the crown of Uppen Egypt. Truth is my body. I havecome to l ighten dankness and to oventhrow the ev i lsp i r i t s thene in . Those who dwe l led in the darknessadore me. I have caused the weeping ones to stand upeven though they ane weary. Behold me, I am indeedthe Deep one who has subdued dankness. I have drivenaway darkness so that light could be lifted up.

lx.These ane words which shall be said on arniving at

the Gnea t Ha l l o f Maa t i , so tha t one may be sepa-rated from all offenses he on she may have committedand may beho ld the faces o f the d iv ine ones . (TheDeclaration of lnnocenceJ

O n e s a y s : H o m a g e t o y o u , G n e a t G o d , L o n d o fMaati. I have come to you O' Lond that I may beholdyoun beauty. I know you; I know youn name; I know thenames of the forty-two divine beings who live with youin this Hall of Maati, who live on the doens of evil andfeed on their blood on the day of taking account ofcharacten in the pnesence of Osinis, The Good One,Surely , the Two Daughtens, the Two Eyes, Lond ofBighteousness is youn name: Behold, I have come toyou, I have bnought you r ighteousness and have doneaway with unnighteousness fon you.

PART L have not done evil against people. I have notmistneated my family and associates. I have not toldlies in the court of law, the seat of Truth. I have not

1 0 9

associated with evi l or worthless pensons. I have notdone evi l things. I have not begun a day by demandingmone than I was due . I have no t bnough t fon th rvn a m e f o n p n a i s e . l h a v e n o t c u n s e d G o d . l h a v e n o ldefnauded the poon of their property. I have not donewhat is hateful to God. I have not slander-ed a senvantto his supenion. I have not infr icted pain. I have notcaused anyone to be hungny. I have not made anyoneweep,

I have not committed murder. I have not ondered amurden on tunned oven anyone to a ki l len. I have notcaused anyone to suffen. I have not stolen the offen-ings o f the temp le . I have no t de fnauded the d iv inebeings of thein bnead offer- irrgs, I have not stolen theoffenings of the depanted. I have not committed adul-tery, I have not been unchaste in the sanctuary. Ihave not incneased or diminished the measune of gnain.I have not neduced the length of the palm, I have notencnoached upon fields of anothen. I have not added tothe weight of the scales, I have not tampened with thetongue of the scales, I have not taken milk fnom themouth of chi ldnen. I have not dr- iven catt le fnom theirpastune.

I have not snared sacred birds. I have not caught fishwith the bait of thein own bodres. I have not stoppedthe flow of waten in its season, I have not damed upwaten when i t should f low. I have not put out a f irewhen it should bunn. I have not viorated the times ofmaking meat of fen ings. I have not dr- iven away cat t lefrom the pnoperty of God. And I have not turned backGod at His appearances. I am pune.

PART ll. I have not done wnong, I have not robbed. Ihave not been gr-eedy. I have not stolen. I have nou mun-dered people. I have not cheated at the measures. Ihave not committed fnaud. I have not stolen the prop-enty of God. I have noL told lies. I have not stolen food.

1 1 0

I have not spoken cunses. I have not violated the law, Ih a v e n o t k i l l e d s a c r e d a n i m a l s , I h a v e n o t d e a l tdeceitfully.

I have not stolen land. I have not eavesdnopped.I have not talked overmuch, I have not been angry with-out just cause. I have not committed adultery.I have not been unchaste. I have not ternorized anyone,I have no t v io la ted the law. I have no t been ho t -tempened. I have not been deaf Lo wonds of tnuth. Ihave not stinred up str.ife. I have not been blind to injus-t ice, I have not engaged in unnatura l sex. I have notbeen deceitful,

I have not indulged in quarnelling. I have not engaged inv io lence. I have not been quick tempened, I have notmisrepnesented my natune. I have not gossiped. I havenot slandered the pharoah. I have not waded in drinkingwaten. I have not been loud voiced. I have not blas-phemed against God. I have not been ar.nogant. I havenot discniminated against others. I have not coveted oth-ens' property, I have not offended the God of my city.

X.Behold, I have come to you,

o f d e c e i t , a b l a m e l e s s o n e ,against him hei l . Thenefone,against me,

I live on Maat, I satisfy myself with the nighteous-ness of my heart. For I have done that which men andwomen request and that which p leases God. I havefound favon with God by doing that which He loves, Ihave given bnead to the hungny, waten to the thinsty,clothes to the naked and a boat to bhose wi[hout one, Ihave made due offenings to God and funenal offenings to

empty of evil and devoido n e w i u h o u t a w i t n e s slet no case be brought

1 1 1

the departed, Deliven me then, and protect me. Make noreport against me in the presence of the Gneat God,For I am one whose mouth is pure and whose hands aneclean. Thenefore, let, it be said to me: "Welcome, comein peace" by those who shall see me.

TheBook of Uindication

Hene begins the Book of Vindicating a Person in theRealm of the Beauti ful West.

l .

Seeker of vindication, you are the Lion, indeed theDouble Lion. You are Honus, pnoLecton of his father' ,You ane the founth of these four powens of heavenwho ane strong and mighty who bning waten and makebhe Nile flow through powen of thein divinity. O seekenof vindication, naise yourself on your left side and putyourself on your night side.

The God of eanth has commanded and the DoubleLion has nepeated, that you be given youn soul whichis on earth and youn shadow which is in secnet places.Seeken of vindication, naise younself that you may bevindicated against your enemies. Take youn staff, younloin cloth and youn sandals and go to the Counci l ofJudgment . May you be v ind ica ted aga ins t youn ene-mies, male and female, against those who would hanmyou and those who would bning a case against you inthe Council of Judgment on this day of joy.

1 1 2

l l .

O' seeken of vindication, the earth opens its mouthfor you; it opens up its jaws in your behalf. May youeat youn bnead and neceive your abundance. May youneach the Gneat Stainway and annive at the SacnedCity, May you negain youn wanmth upon the eanth andmay you become one with Osinis, the Bisen Savior. O'seeken of vindication, the gneat ones stand up fon youand the scnibes who sib upon their mats are in awe ofyou in youn pnesence. You have assumed for younselfthe attnibutes of the wise senpents in the sacr-ed cityof On, Hail seeken of vindication, take possession ofthe sky and inhenit the eanth. Who shal l take away thesky fnom you, you beautiful youthful god? Fon you anevindicated against your enemies, male and female,

i l t .The seeken o f v ind ica t ion says : Ha i l to you , Judg-

ment Counci l of God, who shal l judge me on this dayconcerning what I have said and done being ignonant,remiss and unmind fu l , o ' you who sunround me andstand at my back, may I be vindicated in bhe pnesenceof the Lord of eanth. He shall judge me acconding towhat I have knowingly done. I have stood up witl-r myfeather of truth on my head and my righteousness onmy bnow. My enemies ane greatly gnieved and in myvindication, I have gained possession of al l I own.

lv.O' vindicated one, go forth gneat and mighty even as

Ra went fonth gneat and mighty on the eastenn side ofthe sky. The powens of heaven who spoke on behalf ofHonus, the protector of his father, and who subdued

1 1 3

his enemies who hated him, they shal l speak on behalfo f th i s v ind ica ted one and subdue those who wou ldinjure him (heil, who hate him (heil, and who wouldbring a case against him hefl on this day.

V.Hai l , v ind ica ted one . You sha l l cnoss the sky and

travel acnoss the expanse of the heavens; those in thewinding watenway shal l nevene you and see you whenyou nise on the eastern honizon. You shall come forthfnom the Night-bank of Ba arrd go aboand the Day-bankas Horus , Lo rd o f nob les , h imse l f , commands you .Ha i l , v ind ica ted one , You sha l l go up on the gnea teastern s ide of the sky and go down on the gneatwestern s ide of the eanth among those powens ofheavens who ane in the company of Osinis, the BisenSavior. And you shall go in peace, in peace with Ra,who is in the heavens,

vl.Hail vindicated one, You ane a god and you shal l be

a god. You shall have no enemies or opponents beforeRa who is in the heavens or befone Osinis Lhe gneaLand divine power who is in the sacred city of Abydos.The Lond of the eanth wil l open your bl ind eyes andstraighten out your bent knees fon you. And you wiltbe g iven you t ' hean t wh ich came fnom your mothen ,youn heart which belongs to youn body, youn soul whichw a s o n e a n t h , a n d y o u n c o r p s e w h i c h w a s i n t h eground, Thene will be bnead for" youn body, waten fonyoun thnoat, and sweet ain fon youn nostni ls.

vll.Hail, vindicated one. Come that you may nise up in

1 1 4

the heavens. The ladden at the side of Ra has beenassembled fon you among the powens of heaven whopunge the stneams of thein pestilence so that you maydnink water from them, You shal l walk upon your ownfeet and you shal l not walk with your" head downwand.You ane clean and pure. As Ra lives you ape blamelessand without blemish,

vil l .The doors of the heavens ane opened to you be-

cause of youn nighteousness. May you ascend and seeH a t h o r , L o v e a n d E e a u t y E x a l t e d . M a y a n y c a s eagainst you be cancelled. May any offense of yours beerased by those who weigh hearts in the balance onthe day o f tak ing accoun l o f charac tens . May i t begranted that you join those who are in the Sun-Barkby those who are in the company of Ra.

lx.Go and open the mansion of the soul beyond . . ' l f

you f ind the powens of heaven seated, you shal l si twith them. Receive this sceptre of yours which is atthe feet of Ra and youn nod which is at Lhe feet ofthe Monning Stan. You should r ise into the heavensamong the stans which do not die and you shal l str ikewith your sceptne and nule with youn nod.

X.May you cnoss the desent with Ra, May He cause

you to see the places of those who fol low thein heart.May you f ind Ehe val leys ful l of waten for youn wash-ings. May you pick papyrus plants, l-ushes, and lotusblossoms and buds. Watenfowls shal l come Lo you inthousands , l y ing on youn pa th . You w i l l cas t you l -

1 1 5

throwing st ick at them and a thousand wil l fal l at thesound of its wind. For you, a ladder to the heavensshall be assembled and heaven shall extend hen handto you.

xl.You have youn legs. Lift up youn body; gathen togethen

your membens that you might take the steps to theCounci l of Judgment, to the place whene the powensof heaven are, that they may g ive you the l i fe f lu idthat comes fonth from you. May you neven be motion-less when you regain it, May you tnavel and never tine.May you t ravel across heaven and ear th and neventire, o' vinLuous and vindicated one.

xll.A ct'y went fonth fon me fnom bhe mouth of Ra, the

Penfecten, and [he arn opened up upon my ways. l t is Iwho make the sky l ight after dankness. My pleasingcolon comes fnom the air which goes fonth aften mefrom the mouth of Ra, the Penfecter . The stormclouds of heaven are that which f low fnom me; and hai lsbonms and half-dankness ane my sweat. The length ofthe sky belongs to my stnides and the width of theeanth belongs to my domain. I am one whom Ba, thePenfecten, created and I am bound fon my p lace ineternity.

xll l .I have come into being fnom the f lesh of the self-

cneated God. I am the soul of Shu, the Lond of Light,the God of invisible shape. I am he fshe) who is onewith God, I have become He. I am one who calmed thesky fon himself herselfl and established onder in the

1 1 6

Two Lands of Egypt. I am stnonger and more fiencethan the Exalted Nine.

XIV.I witl neven obey any evil wonds of power and nothing

harmful will happen to me. I have ascended and havese t my enemies unden my fee t tha t I may exenc isepower over them in accordance wi th that which Racommanded of me, I am the wise senpent, Bull of theExalted Nine, who obeys no magic, who is not burnedby f i re and who i s no t we t by wa te r . Indeed , I w i l lnever be burnt by fire on wet because of waten. I willbe l ike Ra everyday, one who wil l be shaped and pro-duced evenyday by the sun people who have seenyesbenday.

XV.I shine l ike Ra dai ly. I establ ish tnuth and expel false-

hood. I open the doons which ane in the abyss below, Iam this fr iend of Ra, weary with wounds. And I amgiven stnength through wisdom. I have found the fenr.y-boat which was lost in i ts f lood wabens and I haveb r o u g h t i t L o l a n d . l h a v e g o n e f o n t h i n i t a n d h a v efennied acnoss. I have dinected my feet to the rightp lace . I have ex tended my anms. I have es tab l i shednule in the heavens and taken possession of bhe earth.And the Exalted Ones of heaven are pleased by it.

XVI.I am the Lion, the Double Lion and the gneatest of

his hei l pniesthood. I am Horus, the uniter. I am hekhel who bnings st i l lness aften the storm. I am lsis inChemmis taking refuge from Seth, the evil one, and Iwi l l l isten l ike one who is deaf and stnains to see. I am

1 1 7

the Lord of eanth, who entered the eanth. I am he{,shd who evaluates whoever senves him heil. I amtransfonmed into one whose spirits ane mighty. I amone with Ra, Lord of His Two Lands, and am he bhe)who is put behind Him. I am the watens and the eanth.The Bitten Lakes and the Gneat Bull are mywill tnavel and enten the place which I know.

TheBook of Rising and Transformation

t.Raise yoursel f o ' v ind icated one. Run, fo t ' you are

exceedingly stnong. You shall sit at the heads of thepowens of heaven. You shal l do that which Osinis, theRisen Savior, did in the Mansion of the Pnince which isin the sacned city of On. Receive your due honor; yourfoot will not be obstnucbed in heaven non will you beopposed on eanth. For you ane the spinit whom Nut,the mothen of heaven, bore and Nephthys, youn sisterspinit , suckled, and Lhey have put you togethen. Anisein your stnength and do what you did before. For youare a spinit. Arise o' spirit, exceedingly strong, adorn-ed as a great wi ld bul l . You wil l not encounter opposi-t ion anywhene you walk and yout ' foot wi l l not beobstnucted anywhene you wish to be,

i l .Rise up o ' v ind icated one, Take hold of youn head'

Gathen together yout ' bones, col lect youl ' l imbs and

1 1 8

shake bhe dust fnom your f lesh. Take youn bnead whichk n o w s n o m o u l d i n e s s a n d y o u r b e e r w h i c h n e v e nbecomes soun. Stand at the gates that bar those withno name. Lo, the gatekeeper comes out to you. Hetakes hold of your hand and takes you to heaven toyoun Fathen. He rejoices at youn coming, gives you Hishands, kisses you, comfonts you and sets you befonethe spirits, the impenishable stans.

i lr.The Heavens declane: This royal vindicated one is my

beloved son in whom I am well pleased, my f irstborn upon the thnone of eanth, and Ra has given himhis henitage in the pnesence of the Gneat Powens ofheaven. All the powers of heaven nejoice saying howblessed is this vindicated one, for His Fathen is greatlypleased with him.

lv.O' royal vindicated one, you have not departed dead.

You have left alive. Sit then upon the throne of Osinis,the Bisen Savior, with your sceptne in youn hand, thatyou may command the l iving, with youn lotus-bud scep-tre in your hand that you may give ordens to thosewhose seats are hidden. Youn arms and shouldens anethose of Ra, your back and belly ane those of Ra, yourback loins and legs ane those of Ra. Youn face is thatof the God of the dead. And both the hi l ls of Horusand Seth serve you.

V.O' Ra, this noyal vindicated one comes to you, an

undying and indestnuctible spirit, one who lays claim to

1 1 9

t he foun p i l l a rs , the foun ca rd ina l po in ts o f the un i -verse, Your son tdaughEeil comes to you, this noyalvindicated one comes to you. May you and he bhelcnoss the sky toge then un i ted in the dank and n isetogether oven the horizon, in the place whene it pleasesyou. Raise him (heil up, O' Ra, and enclose him herlin youn embrace fon he khel is the son {daughterl ofyour own body foreven and even.

vl.The priest of the royal vindicated one says: Stand up

upon this earth which originated from Ra, as the onewho completes this spit t le which came fonth fnom Raas the Bninger Into-Being. Come into being upon thisearth, o' noyal vindicated one. Be exalted upon i t , sothat youn Fathen, Ra, may behold you. Says the royalvindicated one: I have come to you my Fathen; I havecome to you O' Ra. Gnant that I may seize the skyand bake possession of the honizon. Gnant that I mightrule the powers of heaven and pnovide for them, Placethe crook of leadenship in my hand that the head ofLowen and Upper Egypt may be humbled.

vll.The royal v ind icated one says: I am th is sacred

flowen which spnang up fnom earth. My hand is puri f iedby Him who pnepaned my thnone and I am at Ehe noseof Ra, the Great in Power. I have come to the lslandof F ine for test ing. I have establ ished Right in theplace of wrong hene and I am on my way to clothe andequip myself. I appean as the lotus-blossom which is atthe nose of Ra. He will come fonth over the horizoneach day rn the splendor of the sun and the powers ofheaven will be cleansed at the sight of Him.

1 2 0

vll l .The noyal v ind icated one says: I have come bo my

throne which is over the spinits. I unite heants, o' youwho are gneat and in charge of wisdom. I become theembod iment o f S ia , Wisdom Exa l ted , wh ich bearsGod's book and which rests at the r ight hand of Ra. Oyou who ane protected by my hand, i t is I who speakwhat is in the heant of Ra the Great. l , even, I amWisdom Exalted which resfs at the night hand of Ra;the proud one who pres ides oven the cavenn of thedepths,

tx.The noyal vindicated one says: o' you who ane oven

the houns, who stand befone Ra, pnepare a way fonme that I may pass among the patrol of those withwannior faces, fon I am on my way to this throne ofm ine . / am one who i s beh ind the Gnea t God , onewhose head is set in place, who has acquined a shanpstnong honn , That which nemoves Er-ouble fnombefone Ra, the Gneat Bul l , that which causes those indankness to tnemble is the strong honn which is behindthe Great God. I have subdued those who should bepunished. I have stnuck them hand on thein foreheadsand I stand unopposed on the honizon,

X.The reedfloats of the sky ane set in place fon Ra

that Ra may cnoss on Lhem to the honizon. And thereedfloats of the sky ane set in place for me that Imay cross on them to the honizon to Ra. The canal isopened, the Field of Rushes is f i l led and the windingwatenway i s f l ooded so tha t I may be fenn ied oventheneon bo Ra . Bn ing to me the foun b ro thens whopass by, wearens of the side-lock who sband by rhein

121

staffs in the easEern side of the sky. May they tell mygood name to Ra. Reloice fon me, nejoice fon my divineessence. For I am vindicated and my divine essence rsvindicated before God.

Ra has received me to himself, to the sky, to theeastenn side of the sky, as Honus the avengen of hisfather, as osinis the one Risen, as uhis star whichl ights up the sky. My sis[en is sothis and my offspningis the monning stan. Neven again wiil the sky be void oime on the eanth be empty of my pnesence,

xt.The sky is clear and Sothis l ives. Fon I am a l iving

one, the son [daughter] of Sothis and the Gneat Pow-ens of heaven have cleansed themselves fon me amongthe stans of Unsa Majon, the everlast ing. My house inthe heavens wi l l nob pass away, and my throne oneanth will not be destroyed. The Openen-of-the-Wayshas caused me to fly up to the sky in the company ofmy bnothers and sisters, the powens of heaven. Andheaven has extended i ts anms in welcome fon me.

My seat is with you, O' Ra, and I wi l l not yield i t toanyone . I w i l l ascend to the sky to you , O ' Ra , Myface is Ehe face of falcons; my wings are those of theduck and my talons ane those of Him who dwells onCenastes Mountain. Thene is no evidence against meon ear th among men and women and no accusa t ionagainst me in the sky among the powers of heaven.For I have proved false all evidence against me; indeed,I d i sposed o f i t so tha t I m ighr f l y up to the skyamong my bnothers and sistens, the powens of heaven.I use my a rms as a goose and f l ap my w ings l i ke a

122

hawk. Lo, the flier flies. O' men and women of earth. Irise and fly away fnom you.

xll l ."How beau t i fu l to beho ld , and how wonden fu l to

witness," so say the powens of heaven when this noyalvindicated one nises in the sky, when you, o' vindicatedone, ascend in bhe sky with your powen upon you, yourawe around you, and youn words of powen at youn feet.The powens of heaven and of eanth come Lo you. Theymake suppor ts fon you upon thei r anms. May youascend unto the sky and n ise up in i t on the Div ineLadder'. Fon Ra says "The heavens and eanth ane givento you." Behold you have become the enduning bul lamong the wild bul ls set against the evi l one. Endureand last, o' enduring bul l , that you may prevai l at thehead of them and at the head of the spirits foreverand ever.

XIV.I am a holy one who stands in the forefnont, who

lifts the forehead, a star before whom the powers ofheaven a re humb le , and the Exa l ted Ones s tand inawe. And it is my own hand which will naise me up. Iam the one who escaped from the coiled senpent ofevil. I have nisen in a blast of fine, having turned my-self around. I have travelled the noads of Heaven. Ihave cleansed myself on the hi l l where Ra naised Him-se l f , I p lace the s ta i rway , I se t up the ladder andthose in panadise take hold of my hand and tift me upinto the heavens.

XV.Homage to you, O' Ra, you who travels acnoss the

123

sky and heavens, who cross the winding waterway. Ihave grabbed hold of you for myself, for I am a godand the son of a God. Indeed, I am a f lower whichcame forth from the Nile, a golden flower which origi-nates from lseion.

XVI.Heaven has commended this vindicated one to Ra,

the Perfecter, and the Open-armed has commendedthis vindicated one to the Lond of Light, that He may

cause yonder doors of heaven to be opened for the

v indicated and bar others who have no name. Take

hold of the hand of this vindicated one and carry him

up to the sky that he may not d ie on ear th among

men and women.

XVII."How beauEiful to behold and wonderful to wiEness,"

says ls is , sacred mother , when you ascend in theheavens, with your power upon you' your awe aroundyou and your words of power at your feet. You arehelped by Ra, the Perfecter, just as He always does.The Exalted Ones of heaven are brought to you andthe exalted ones of earth are assembled fon you. Theyplace their hands under you and make a ladder for you

so thaE you may ascend on i t to the heavens. The

doors of the heavens and the entranceways of the

starry expanse are opened for you. Ra, the Perfecter,has gathered together the districts fon you and hasgiven you the cit ies of earth. You are the one whopresides over Upper Egypt and Nubia. Have they killedyou on said you shall die? You shall never die, but shall

surely live forever. You shall be effective agarnst them

bnil superion to them, living and enduring fonever and

ever.

1?4

xvlll.I have come to you O' Mother of Heaven, I have duly

bunied my father and left Horus, the new pharoah,behind me. My wings have grown into those of a fal-con, full of feathers of the sacred hawk. My soul hasbrought me and my words of power have made meeffective.

Behold me O' Ra and recognize me, I be long tothose who know you; thenefore know me also. lf thisvindicated one is raised up, I will not forget the gooddeed done for me. Commend me to the foun fience andraging winds which ane around you and which see withtwo faces, Lhe winds which confront with funious noar-ing those who are destined for distress, those whomthey would destroy. May they offer no opposition whenI tunn to you, when I come to you and te l l you th isname of yours, "Great Flood which came forth fromOne-who-is-Gneat." I wi l l not be bl ind, even i f you putme in darkness and I will not be deaf, even if I do nothear your voice. Take me wiEh you, O' Ra. For I willdrive away storms for you, clear away clouds for youand break up and scatter hail for you. Sunely, I willproduce praises upon praises for you and adorationswithout end.

name of yours, "Great Flood which came forth from

125

SELECTED BIBI IOGRAPHY

Allen, Thomas. n97q The Book of the Dead or @11glorth ByDay, Chicago: Univers

Breasted, James. t1906) Ancient Records of Egypt, 5 volumes,Chicago: University of Cnffi

Budge, E,A. Wall is. (1898) The Book of the Dead. 3 volumes,London: Kegan Paul, Tnench, Trubnen & Co., LTD,

Canruthers, Jacob. (19841 Essavs in Ancient Egvptian Studies,Los Angeles: University of Sankore Press.

Diop, Cheikh Anta. t1981 ) Civilisation ou Barbanie, Paris: PresenceAfnicaine,

Erman, Adolf. (1927) The Litenature of the Ancient Eqvptians,London: Methuen & Co.

Faulkner, R,O. t1969) The Ancient Egyptian Pyr2volumes,London: Ox@

ngTA fhe Ancient Egyptian Coffin Texts, 2volumes, London: Aris & Phil l ips.

James, George. Stolen Legacy, San Francisco: Julian RichardsonAssociates.

-

Karenga, Maulana. (19891 The Book of Coming Forth Bv Oav:The Ethics of the Declarations of lnnocence. Los Angeles Univer-sity of Sankore Press.

. (ed.) (1989) Studies in Kemetic Culture, LosAngeles: University of Sankore Pness.

Karenga, Maulana and Jacob Canruthers, (eds.) (1986) Kemetand the Afnican Worldview, Los Angeles: Universi ty ofSankore Pness.

Kaster, Joseph, (1gBB)

tAncient Egypt, New York Holt, Reinhant and Winston.

Lichtheim, Mir iam. t1975, 1976,1980) Anq"@a t u r e , 3 v o l u m e s , L o s A n g e l e s : @fornia Pness.

Mayer, Josephine and Tom Prideaux. (1961 ) Neven To Die, TheEgyptians in Their Own Words, New York Viking Press.

Piankoff, Alexandre. (1957 - 1964) Egyptian Religious Texts andRepresentations, 6 volumes, Princeton: Princeton UniversityPress,

Pritchard, John. (ed.) (19551 Ancient Near Eastern Texts, Prin-ceton: Princeton University Press.